


Of Knights and Windmills

by GladiusNocturno



Category: RWBY
Genre: Action/Adventure, Comedy, Comfort, Fantasy, Friendship, Gen, Mentor/Protégé, Road Trips
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-27
Updated: 2020-11-15
Packaged: 2021-02-27 11:54:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 14
Words: 157,266
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22436704
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GladiusNocturno/pseuds/GladiusNocturno
Summary: Jaune Arc has been offered to travel with and be trained by a Legendary Huntsman, Dominique Cervantes (Don Quixote), an old eccentric man with a love for adventure!...and a little bit of madness. Follow their tale as they journey through the country side of Anima. A story of heroism, grief, loss, witchcraft and dreams. A story Of Knights and Windmills.





	1. The Dream Catcher

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After their adventure in Atlas, Jaune and his friends arrive back at the city of Argus. With a lot of self doubt, they boy is uncertain of his own future until he receives an offer to go on a journey!

**Chapter I**

**The Dream Catcher**

It is the summer season in the continent of Anima. Normally, the norther port city of Argus has a cold weather, the likes of which only Atlassian citizens might be used to, but in this time of the year the sun shines and the city becomes warmer yet cold enough for you to enjoy a refreshing breeze. Argus is flooded with tourist from all over the world during the summer, many seeking to take part in their summer festivals, like the annual Sanctum Academy tournament, others wanting to fully enjoy their famous beaches which are very popular with celebrities across Remnant. It is a time in which the city´s commerce thrives, which is why this year many are worry. It is well known by everyone that tensions between the nations have increased ever since the tragedy that was the Fall of Beacon. With the Atlassian border closed, many in Argus worry that they wouldn't receive Atlassian tourists this year, which were their primary visitors and certainly the wealthiest ones. Their patronage meant a significant gain for the citizens of Argus, it is a merchant city after all. Fortunately, there have been recent news from Atlas, it would appear that a group of heroes managed to safe them from a large Grimm attack. There are rumors saying that these heroes were the same ones that saved Argus from a rampaging Leviathan a few months prior. Tensions between Atlas and Haven seem to have diminish thanks to these heroes and the border is said to be reopen soon.

As the sun shines and the seagulls fly, the Cotta-Arc family approaches the Argus base of the Atlas military.

"STOP!" firmly said in unison two tall Atlas guards. The soldiers continued speaking one after the other as if they were one person, "You are approaching a facility of the Atlas Military!", "Identify yourself, civilians! Or leave this area immediately!".

Terra Cotta pulled out a badge and explained to the soldiers, "My name is Terra Cotta, I'm a technician for the town´s relay tower, this is my wife, Saphron. We were contacted by Mrs. Cordoven…".

The soldiers interrupted, "SPECIALIST!".

Terra made a visible expression of annoyance and after a small pause continued, "Specialist…Cordoven. To…".

Terra was interrupted once more but this time by her impatient wife, "Could you just let us in already?! We are meeting Cordo to receive my brother and his friends that are coming from Atlas".

The soldiers felt indignation for this insolence but before they could replay, they heard the voice of their superior.

"Guards! What is the meaning of this?", the soldiers stood firmly facing Cordoven as she approached the gate.

"Ma'am! These civilians are trying to access the gate and…".

"Of course, they are, you dumbasses! I called them here! Open the gate at once!" Cordoven replayed with her characteristic authoritarian tone.

"YES, MA'AM!" the soldiers answered before quickly opening the gate. Cordoven greeted the women properly as they entered the complex while Saphron and baby Adrian discreetly sticked their tongues out to mock the guards, much to their annoyance.

The Cotta-Arcs were walked to the base´s main landing port, on their way they thanked Cordoven for letting them know about the ship´s arrival.

"Don't thank me" Cordoven said, "I´m just following orders straight from General Ironwood. If I had a choice, I would have thrown those insolent children in a forced labor camp!...but, they did save Argus and Atlas so, I guess I'll have to let it pass…" Cordoven expressed with a mix of anger and frustration.

The 3 women and the baby arrived to the landing port as the Atlassian ship arrived. Once the engine was off and the door opened, Teams RWBY, JNR, Oscar, Qrow and Maria stepped out of the ship.

"BABY BROTHER!" Saphron yelled at Jaune. It´s been over a 2 month since these two brothers have seen each other, so it came to no surprise when Saphron passed her baby to her wife and greeted Jaune with a big loving hug.

"I missed you so much!" Said Saphron to which Jaune with a visible painful face answered "You…are…My…Ribs…No…air…".

Saphron released him just to scold him "You had me worried, young man!".

"Hey, I can take care of myself!...sometimes…" Jaune answered while rubbing the back of his head.

"Saphron!" Ruby yelled before jumping for a hug of her own.

The heroes shared a tender reunion with the Cotta-Arcs, but Maria Calavera had someone else to see, she approached Cordoven and the two old rivals had their own…less tender reunion.

"Witch", "She Devil" the old women said, greeting each other in their own way.

Cordoven took a quick glance at Maria "So you are still alive. You didn't cause much trouble to the General, did you?".

Maria put her walking stink in front of her and with a smug smile told her "Oh don't worry Cordo, Jimmy and I actually hit it off".

"What?! You dare to address him with such disrespect?!" Cordoven replayed but Maria quickly answered saying "Of course, we became buddies over a cup of tea, he loved the stories I told him, specially the one about that little incident with the giant robot and the angry old hag".

Cordoven with panic in her eyes asked her "You…You told the General?!", Maria responded with a smile "Maybe…" as she walked off while bursting in a maniacal laugh, leaving Cordoven with a face of terror and anger, "CALAVERAAAAA!".

* * *

Noon arrived and the summer festival in Argus was full of life. Food, drinks, all sorts of souvenirs filled the different stands on the streets and decorations covered every single corner of the city.

"Ren! Look at that!" said Nora pointing at a stand selling grilled beef skewers. Ren´s attention however, was caught by the exotic teas on display on another stand. Saphron noticed how everyone became so curious and enamored with the festival. Blake´s eyes shined at the sight of the newest edition of Ninjas of Love, while Yang raced Nora to the grill stand dragging poor Oscar with them and Weiss got her eyes on a hand made tiara the likes of which she always dreamed of as a little girl.

"Hey! Don't split up!" yelled Qrow, once again he lost control of the kids, not that he ever had it though.

"Come on Uncle Qrow! We haven't had a moment for ourselves in months! And I just heard someone mention there is a Legendary Huntsman in town!" Ruby said to her uncle, it was true that ever since the Fall of Beacon these kids had to leave behind the moments of leisure, they were forced into an unbearable responsibility, and while not saying it, this pained Qrow deeply.

"It´s ok, let them enjoy the festival, we will regroup at the house later and go out for dinner. Sounds good?" Terra reassured Qrow, who turned his frown into a smile, "Fine. Guess I'm getting a bit old, I'm starting to sound like Tai".

With all set, the heroes explored the festival on their separate ways, however, something caught Ruby's attention, Jaune was looking for something unusual, flowers.

"They are very pretty" Ruby said to a now flustered Jaune.

"Th…They are. A bit pricy but, those are the ones I need" Jaune said as he picked up and paid for the bouquet of red lilies. Ruby was really curious, there were so many interesting and unique things in the festival, but Jaune buying flowers? It was odd for her to see that, she just had to ask

"So, who are they for? Are they for Saph? Or don't tell me you have a girl here" Ruby asked while teasing her friend.

Jaune blushed a little, "What?! Of course not! They…well I mean it kind of is for a girl…but not like that!".

Ruby laughed before asking once more, "So, who is she?".

Jaune´s face became a bit serious with a melancholic look, "You haven't seen it, right? You can come with me if you want".

* * *

Jaune and Ruby arrived at a park, with a statue of a very familiar friend. This is the memorial to their dear friend, Pyrrha. Ruby was in shock, her eyes tearing up a little, her attention was then put on Jaune as he placed the flowers on the base of the statue.

"You know, I think she wouldn't have liked it. The statue. She would have been embarrass but would have been too polite to say anything. As long as it made people happy, of course she would have let them make it. She was just that kind", Jaune said with tears in his eyes and his voice a little drowned.

Ruby turned to him and tried to comfort him "Jaune…" she said before he interrupted her.

"Sometimes it doesn't feel real, you know? That she is gone. Sometimes I wonder, had I've never gone to Beacon, she might have gotten a better partner…Someone that could have…", Jaune continued, getting a bit lost in his own words.

Ruby held his hand to get his attention, "Jaune, Stop it already! She loved you. She would have been so proud of the man you´ve become. I'm sure of it.", Ruby told him, giving him a sweet smile afterwards. Jaune smiled back and thanked her before looking back at the statue in silence. Jaune really appreciated Ruby´s words, but his mind was full of doubt. Proud of the man he has become is a sentiment he doesn't share; he is stronger but he still has a long way to go. Sometimes he felt like he was nothing but dead weight to his friends, and sure he could support them with his semblance, but other than that he saw himself as useless at times. Proud of the man he has become? To Jaune there was nothing to be proud of, he was still the same weak dumb boy who cheated his way into Beacon Academy, too weak and too naive to protect those he loved, at least in his own eyes.

Jaune and Ruby stood there for a while, remembering their departed friend. Pyrrha´s memory was deeply engraved in both of their hearts. The memory of her smile and her kindness was at times the beacon of light that help them keep going, but at others, it was a thorn that pained their hearts. The two team leaders decided to stay at the park, eating some festival cookies while chatting about how far have they come. Jaune and Ruby always had a close relationship, it was the sort of friendship that could last a life time. They could spend hours just talking and laughing, it was those moments that they treasured the most as for a few moments all the troubles of the world just banished. Time flew by and the evening came, it was time to go back to their friends.

* * *

The gang reunited once more and headed to the Cotta-Arc house hold. On their way they saw a group of people grouping up in one place, and there were even more people running to take a look.

Weiss stopped a young boy and asked "Excuse me. What is happening over there?".

"Haven't you heard? A Legendary Huntsman is visiting the festival! That´s him!" the young boy answered before running towards the crowd.

Ruby instantly jumped with excitement graving Weiss´s had and running with her to meet the Legendary Huntsman with the rest of the gang following them.

On top of a wooden box, an old tall and skinny man stood. He was wearing a coat underneath a metal armor chest piece, long leather gloves with metal arm guards, a belt with multiple pouches, pants with metal leg guards, boots, a cape and a distinct leather hat with a bit of the front shaped like a half circle. His skin was light brown and he had a white pointy beard and mustage. The huntsman was wielding a circular shield on his left hand and an arming sword on his right, he was jumping around on top of the box swinging his sword randomly as he told a story.

"And before it knew it! I sliced the head of the King Taijitu in half, and when the second head saw what I did, it panicked! Shaking in fear and trying to escape, but the beast had killed an innocent girl and her mother, so there was no mercy from me!" the huntsman said to an applauding crowd.

Jaune was in awe, he has met many pro huntsmen before, but this one was different, he looked and talked like one of the heroes from the stories his father would read him before bed.

"Thank you, thank you, but it was just another day in the life of a hero, that´s a…" The huntsman stopped, as one person in the crowd caught his attention. He quickly jumped from his box, graved a flower that was decorating a near light post and immediately kneeled before Maria.

"My sweet and beloved orchid! Our paths have once more crossed! Fate! FATE I TELL YOU! It is what has brought us together once again, my dear" the Huntsman said with passion in his voice. The heroes stared in shock at the sight of this old man professing his love to their elderly friend. More surprisingly to them was hearing Maria chuckling and graving the flower.

"Haha. It´s good to see you too, Donny".

Ruby was the first one to jump in to the scene, not waiting a second to meet this legendary Huntsman that acts so friendly to her mentor, "You know each other?! No way!", Ruby said with excitement.

Maria turned to her companions and introduced them "Yeah, Donny is an old friend of mine. Donny, this is my apprentice, Ruby, and her friends".

"Apprentice you say? Then a party of young huntsmen! Remarkable!" The huntsman said before bowing and introducing himself "The name is Dominique Cervantes, Knight Errant of Remnant! At your service".

Jaune was instantly curious, "Knight Errant?" he asked.

Dominique proudly responded "That´s right! A Knight Errant. It is a title only the most noble and heroic huntsmen can earn. It means that you have been tasked to wander around the world protecting it´s people from the forces of evil!".

Jaune and Ruby were both thrilled, their faced couldn't hide how much of instant fans they had become of this eccentric pro huntsman, however, Yang wasn't that much of a fan, there was something about this quirky guy she didn't like and because of that she asked with a bit of a snarky attitude.

"How is that different from just a regular hunt…" But before she could finish, Dominique interrupted by stealing Jaune´s sword, pulling it out and activating its shield.

"Exquisite! This sword is simply magnificent! And the shield as well! It is a weapon worthy of a true knight! What is your name, lad?".

Jaune was caught off guard, but he managed to replay "Me?..I..Arc, Sir, Jaune Arc".

Dominique continued "Arc, you say? Well, Jaune Arc, you see, Huntsmen these days don't show appreciation for the classics anymore. But you? A young lad facing the hardships with nothing but a sword and a shield? That´s the spirit of a Knight Errant right there!".

Jaune got filled with happiness, to be a hero, a knight like in the stories of his youth is what he had always dreamed.

"Since you are such a good friend of Maria, would you like to go get dinner with us? It would be amazing to have another Legendary Huntsman joining us" Ruby said with cheer in her tone.

Maria got a bit concerned for a moment "Maybe we should ask Saphron first, they don't expect visitors", to which Qrow replayed "It´ll be fine, Terra said we were going out anyways".

"So, what do you say?" Ruby insisted.

"It would be my honor!" Dominique responded.

* * *

Night time came and the heroes all joined together at a restaurant. Stories came and went, jokes, laughter, it was a time of joy and happiness. Dominique finished his drink before continuing the conversation.

"Now. Let me tell you a story. A few years ago, I was captured by a pirate crew off of the coast of Vacuo. The captain was this fancy guy with a hook hand and a funny accent. But of course, me being a prisoner was not going to fly. I escaped during the night but before I could get to a boat, tentacles appeared from bellow the ship! A massive Grimm attacked us! the crew was in full panic! That was of course until I jumped into action. I literally jumped to the water, right into the maws of the beast and STABBED its insides! The crew was so impressed, they made me the new captain the next morning. But of course, I wasn't about that criminal life. That is no life for a hero".

Jaune was in awe, his face was that of a fan boy meeting his hero for the first time, "That´s amazing!" Jaune said with excitement.

Dominique noticed how much Jaune was enjoying his tales, "Haha! If you liked that story, I have many of them!", Dominique stated.

"Jaune has always love those kinds of stories, our dad used to read them to us all the time, and Jaune always ended up graving a stick and swinging it around in his pajamas" Saphron said, she always loved to embarrass her baby brother in front of his friends.

Ashamed by the laughter of his friends, Jaune´s face went red, but he was then surprised by Dominique´s hand patting his back, "Hahaha! A dreamer then? That´s the spirit, my boy. I followed my dreams too, kid, and let me tell you, you should never stop chasing them, keep moving towards them, and I guarantee that one day you will catch that dream and make it your own! And if your dream is to become a great huntsman, then I´ll say you are on the right track, lad!" Dominique told Jaune who answered

"Thanks, but I'm not really that skilled. They however are amazing".

"Is that so?" Dominique replayed with a curious tone.

"Aww, don't undersell yourself, muscles. This guy saved me from a giant robot with noting but his own aura! And don't even get me started with that time we fought a Nuckelavee!", Nora said with cheer as she boosted of the achievements her dear friend has accomplished with their team.

"We also have plenty of stories, grandpa" Yang said with a certain smug attitude before adding "And we have done way cooler things than that, I mean, we just saved Atlas form a Grimm invasion, and just before that we helped kill a giant Leviathan right here in Argus".

Dominique got a surprised face, the achievements of this kids caught him off guard but he quickly recovered composure "Did you really? That is simply amazing! Wouldn't expect less from the companions of the gorgeous Grimm Reaper herself!" Dominique said as he raised his drink for a toast.

"That´s enough of that, Don", Maria said with a little smile on her face.

"So what is your plan now, guys?" Saphron asked, she had missed her little brother deeply but she also knew he and his friends had an important responsibility to deal with.

Ruby finished shallowing a bit of her cheese cake before answering "Well, our next destination is Vacuo, we have to visit Shade Academy, but because of our success in Atlas we actually don't have a rush".

Blake continued "So tomorrow, we are getting the Argus Express to Haven and from there most of us will take an airship back to Vale".

"Most of you?" Terra asked.

"Yeah, because we have a bit of extra time, Ruby and I will take the long road south of Lake Matsu. We will travel by foot on our own training retreat and then take a ship at the town of Gaviota back to Vale", Maria explained before sipping her tea.

The idea of a journey through Grimm infested lands resounded in Dominique´s head, the dangers, the thrill, the adventure! His mind couldn't shake the idea off. Traveling across the region was something he was used to, but this was different, the excitement of this adventure wasn't just the dangers to be face, it was the journey itself, a journey of growth, and the bond of master…and apprentice.

* * *

The next morning the team was getting ready to leave Argus, they all said their goodbyes to Saphron, Terra and Little Adrian.

"You better take good care of yourself; you hear me?" Saphron told her little brother with a loving tone on her voice. "I'll be fine, don't worry" Jaune reassured her before hugging her goodbye.

Right when they were leaving, a voice was heard in the distance.

"Hey! Wait up!" Dominique yelled while running towards the gang.

"Donny?" Maria said, surprised to see her friend this soon.

"The Stained Coast Line!" Dominique said while recovering his breath.

"The Stained Coast Line is the land mass that goes north of Lake Matsu from Argus all the way to Gaviota" Dominique explained, although his comments just left the group baffled.

Dominique continued "I've made my choice! Jaune! I want you to become my squire!" Dominique said as he put his hand on Jaune´s shoulders. "We´ll be traveling The Stained Coast Line and meet with Ruby and Maria at Gaviota. Ill train you! Shape you into a true Knight Errant of Remnant! What do you say, lad?".

Jaune was in shock, here it was a pro Legendary Huntsman offering him, the kid who cheated his way into Beacon, the chance to mentor him, but Jaune had another concern. After the Fall of Beacon, Jaune had grown worried for the safety of his friends, he was hesitant to be apart from them, and they noticed it.

Ren approached him, putting his hand on Jaune´s shoulder before tell him, "You should go, Jaune. Nora and I will be fine, go".

Nora continued "Is a one in a life time chance! You have to take it!".

Jaune then turned to Ruby, their eyes met and Ruby said with a smile in her face "Go, you know you want to, and that way we will both be training with legendary huntsmen and become better leaders! Ill meet you at Gaviota, I promise".

Jaune got teary eyed, he had a chance to get closer to his dream and his friends supported him with love.

Jaune turned to Dominique and said "I'll do it!".

"Excellent! We´ll leave at once!".

* * *

As the Knight and his squire left Argus heading to the Stained Coast Line, the group stood there watching them walk in the distance.

"So, he will be trained by a legendary huntsman. It´ll be interesting to see how much he improves" Oscar claimed before noticing something weird, Maria was chuckling, and that is never a good sign.

"Oh, Donny isn't a legendary huntsman", Maria said while barely containing her laughter.

"What?!" they all yelled.

Maria continued "No, he is just missing some screws and exaggerates his stories, he most likely will get the kid in a lot of trouble".

"I knew it! I knew something was off with that guy!" Yang said proud of herself.

Ruby quickly asked Maria,"Then why did you let Jaune go with him?!". To which Maria replied "Well obviously because it´s funny! Hahahah!".

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you everyone for reading. This is my very first Fan fiction and also the first story I have published period. This was originally published in fanfiction.net and now I'm giving AO3 a go. I would really appreciate any comments and Im completely open to criticism, after all, how else would I improve?. 
> 
> Bit of Lore: Dominique Cervantes is based of Don Quixote and the story will put Jaune in the role of Sancho Panza as the two go on a journey of self growth across Anima. 
> 
> I hope you enjoyed the first chapter, I dont have a schedule for the next ones but I already drafted the rest of them and will be uploading as soon as they are ready.


	2. Windmills

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The Journey begins. Jaune is excited for his new adventure and eager to learn from his new mentor, however, not everything is sunshines and rainbows and soon Jaune will understand the mess he got himself into.

**Chapter II**

**Windmills**

It is noon of the first day of travel, the sun shines with clear skies over the green hills of the Stained Coast Line. Dominique walks proudly with his head tall; the adventure begins! His blood boiled with excitement. Just imagining the journey ahead of him was enough to put a big smile on his face. The feeling of adventure wasn't new to him, but this time is different, Dominique has become a master, his young squire was a dreamer just like him, he finally had a like minded person to pass down his wisdom to…and of course to bust out about his exploits.

"And there I was! Surrounded by bandits, 10 humans and 10 faunus. They even had a big gorilla faunus strong enough to break tree trunks with his bare hands. But of course, that was no match for my trusty shield. The gorilla faunus threw a punch with all his might and weight and I did not yield!" Dominique said proudly. If there was anything, he loved more than the adventure itself was telling the stories of his journeys and quests. To captivate the ears and hearts of those who listened to his tales.

"That…is an awesome…story…Mr Cervan…tes.." Jaune said with difficulty. "But…I have a..ques…tion".

"Well, you are interrupting me, but go on lad, speak up"

"Why do I have…to carry…all of …this?!" Jaune said with a bit of anger on his voice. Ever since they left Argus, Dominique made Jaune carry all their heavy bags and equipment. They´ve been traveling for 4 hours nonstop under the summer sun without water or even a bit of shade and Jaune could barely keep going, him wearing armor and a hoodie didn't help either.

"Well isn't it obvious?" Dominique said, to which Jaune answered with realization "Of Course! Is..a part of…my…training…isn't it?" to which Dominique responded "What? No kid, I woke up with an awful back pain, I think I slept in a bad position or something" and immediately afterwards took a drink of cold water from his canteen. "Ah! Refreshing! You want some, Squire?...Squire?..Jaune?"

Jaune collapsed of exhaustion, the bags piling on top of him.

After refreshing on a near by stream and grabbing a bite, Dominique kept sharing his stories to an amused Jaune. "Let me tell you a story. One time I was in Vale eating the most delicious noodles I´ve ever gotten, when I heard some odd noises coming from the kitchen. A thick eyebrow creep had kidnapped some innocent faunus! He had them tied up and was holding a butcher knife, clearly, he had the intention of serving them in the noodles, that was his secret ingredient! I was disgusted, and angered! I fought him off and freed the victims! Can you imagine?! Eating another person?!" Dominique said, to which Jaune responded, "But, didn't you say it was the best noodles ever?", Dominique quickly answered by saying "Well, yeah, I mean it was pretty good but that's not the point, the point is that it was wrong! And they were expensive as hell too. 15 Lien for a bowl of noodles!? Damn Eyebrows man, I hope he rots in jail!".

Dominique finished his sandwich and noticed that Jaune had been really quiet in the few hours they have known each other. He tried to break the ice with the kid by asking him for a story of his own.

"Ah Story?" Jaune said a bit nervous.

"Yeah, your blonde friend said you have done plenty of heroic deeds, and that little red head rascal said you even fought a giant robot and a..a..Knuckle-Bee ?" Dominique said as he tried to encourage Jaune to share his story.

"Knuckle? Oh the Nuckelavee? Yeah well that wasn't me that much, Ruby, Ren and Nora did most of the work there, I did manage to block it on my own for a bit though" Jaune said a bit shy. He didn't want to take what he thought was undeserved credit from his friends just to impress his new teacher, but even so Dominique did nothing but praise him. "Blocking it on your own?! And you ask why I gave you those bags? You have the strength of a bull, my boy!". Jaune didn't know how to feel about that response, he was a little flattered by the comments but also...very annoyed that he had to keep carrying the bags.

"And that was it?" Dominique persisted, to him a well told story was more valuable than any reward he could be offered and was adamant in making Jaune share his. Jaune however was very uncomfortable by being put on the spot in this way. Dominique continued "Listed boy, if you are going to tell a story you have to tell it right. Make it sound grandiose! Spectacular! Exciting!".

Jaune gave it some thought and decided to give it a try "Ok, so we were on this abandoned town…well it was destroyed more than just abandoned, but then again it was abandoned because it was destroyed so…Ah anyways, Ruby and I arrived to this town that…I guess evacuated is the right term? If you abandon something that is about to be destroyed then you are evacu…Hey? Sir?" Jaune stopped realizing that his master was falling asleep. "IM AWAKE! Im a…" Dominique yelled before massaging the bridge of his nose "Good lords, kid, you call that a story?! Go pick up the bags and let's keep moving, we don't have all day" he added.

Jaune a bit ashamed did as told but when he tried to pick up the bags his frustration took the best of him. "Oh, come on! Can't we get a cart or a horse or something?!", Jaune yelled to which his master replied, "Stop whining! Tell you what, if you tell me a good story you won't be carrying those bags anymore, deal? Until then get moving, Squire!".

* * *

The road ahead was long and dangerous. The Stained Coast Line is one of the regions of Anima with the most settlements, allowing for a lot of merchant routes to be created along it. The region is full of different resources and has easy access to both the North Sea and Lake Matsu and its big reserve of both fresh water and multitude of Dust. The lands are very fertile as evidence by both their green hills and deep forests, in fact much of the success of the many settlements came from their agricultural production of fruits, vegetables, flowers and derivate agricultural products, making it the most lucrative industry in the region. The rest of the settlements were mostly fishing and merchant towns, the later ones being the ones that tied the entire region together. However, the abundance of human towns this far away from the main walls of the Kingdom of Mistral made this region very Grimm active. It is said that the Grimm territory of the Stained Coast Line holds some of the rarest and strongest specimens of Grimm in the continent in both land and sea. It is for this reason that settlements in the Stained Coast Line, while numerous are only compose of small towns and villages. There aren't big cities in the Stained Coast Line as the humans that live there choose to keep their towns as spread out as possible in order to reduce Grimm attacks…with varied decrees of success that is.

The distance from the main Kingdom also makes it difficult for Mistral soldiers and police forces to stablish effective operations in the Stained Coast Line. The richer towns generally create their own security forces composed of town people, while the smaller towns relay on bounty boards for Huntsmen to maintain order in their settlement. The lack of a stablished regional law enforcement unit made this region very attractive for bandits, their presence plagues the region as they prey on small towns.

Huntsmen were also very attracted to this region, the bounties were plenty, the legends of powerful Grimm were numerous and their services were always in high demand. For all of those reason the region was full of Huntsmen of different decrees of skill…or that´s how it use to be. The fall of Beacon wasn't the only tragedy faced by the Huntsmen academies recently. Huntsmen based in Mistral were slowing disappearing. To the public, the news was that Grimm activity had become higher and higher and Grimm were becoming stronger, but there was more to the story than that. Haven Academy´s former headmaster, Leonardo Lionheart, had been setting up Pro Huntsmen on what would be their last missions. He sent them to missions that were either suicide or were traps for them to be killed by the assassins of…his Goddess. Lionheart lost his life at the Battle of Haven, leaving Mistral´s Huntsmen lacking in both organization, skill, experience, and sadly, numbers. This event had severe repercussions for the Stained Coast Line as it meant that the first line of defense they had against Grimm and Bandits, was now, gone.

* * *

Jaune and Dominique had been traveling for 2 days now and during all that time Dominique told Jaune story after story, every story more epic and spectacular than the other. "Let me tell you a story" he kept saying and Jaune kept listening to every single one of them. So many damsels rescued, so many Grimm slain, so many feats of bravery and chivalry. He told a story about him piloting a smuggling ship full of refuges while followed by a swarm of Lancers. How he killed a Sphinx using nothing but his wit and a role. He told the tale of the feline damsel of a far away island who begged him to stay with her and lead her freedom fighting organization. That time he fought Beringels in the Jungles, Goliaths in the deserts, Sea Feilongs in the frozen seas and swarms of Death Stalkers in the Jungles…again...He went a lot to the Jungles, ok?

Jaune enjoyed every story told by his hero…at first. After the 20th one he started realizing that many…well, didn't make any sense. On one story he apparently infiltrated an Atlas military base to rescue a little girl when he was attacked by a group of Boarbatusks, but, how did a group of Boarbatusks get inside an Atlas Military base and why was there a little girl being held there? There was also this one story about underground cultists he was sure he saw on a movie, and another story of him fighting a wild feral man with a big mustache in Vale and don't even get him started with the story of the cannibalistic vegans.

The more stories he told, the sicker Jaune was getting of them and the heavy bags were not helping his patients.

"Now, let me tell you a story. You ever heard of an Ursa Major? Well what if I tell you there is an even bigger Ursa! The Ursa Primus! Or well, at least there was. I was tasked with killing the last of those beasts, finally getting the species extinct. It was a battle of epic proportions! The beast nearly took my leg off! But…"

"Can we please, stop for a minute!" Jaune said with frustration, interrupting his master in the middle of a passionate story.

"Wow, that´s the tone you address your master with, young lad?!" Dominique stated with a serious tone that remarked his authority.

"I..Im sorry, Mr Cervantes. It´s just that, we have been walking all day and…Do you at least see a town near by on the map?" Jaune asked, hopeful that at the very least he could a sleep on a warm bed for the night. His face however changed to a shocked one the moment he heard Dominique´s response.

"Map? Pff. As long as you can see the Sun raising on the West and setting on the East, you will never need a map, my boy!" Dominique said with his characteristic cheerful tone. But Jaune´s indignation couldn't be hide. "But that´s not… You don't have a…The Sun sets on the WEST!".

"Pick up the pace, Squire!" Dominique said as he pulled out his favorite flute and started playing it. "We will take this road over here" he said has he pointed at a bunch of bushes.

Jaune still frustrated replied with indignation "But, that´s not a road…"

"Lad, roads are made by your feet. There is a world to discover and You have a life to snatch from the hands of death itself!. Let's get to it! ADVENTURE!" Dominique replied as he charged into the woods playing his flute.

Jaune reluctantly followed him, but his mind was completely unease. He has been following an old man for 2 days, carrying his bags, traveling without a map and hearing stories he has been starting to doubt. Who was this man? What was he doing?! What wa..was…what was…he…d…

Jaune´s field of view started to get blurry. He started to lose his train of thought. He could still see Dominique so he kept following him, deeper and deeper into the woods. The unease mind suddenly got replaced with confusing thoughts and the things he was seeing suddenly started…to change.

Jaune´s vision started to go dark and everything around him became weirder and weirder. He saw trees bending from the middle of their trunks. He saw mushrooms that grew large and others that started to glow. Eventually the forest itself looked like it was moving on its own, the floor seemed like it was breathing. Jaune saw all of this but for some reason, he wasn't afraid, he wasn't freaked out or anything, he felt…nothing. He was walking aimlessly deeper and deeper into the forest. He no longer saw Dominique, he banished in thin air, but for some reason, this didn't face Jaune, he just kept walking. The forest went darker and darker the deeper he walked and it only became weirder over time. Bugs were eating birds. Streams of water floated in mid air and the fish in it kept staring at Jaune.

With every step, Jaune´s eyes started to get dry, he didn't notice that he had stopped blinking. His head started to hurt and he started to feel that his feet were sinking in the ground. Every step was harder than the next one but Jaune didn't stop walking in a straight line. His vision went darker and darker to the point he could barely see. And in the distance, he started to hear voices.

"J…Jaun….Jaune" He kept hearing. The voice was familiar and eventually other voices kept calling his name. "Jaune" the voices said. What started as faint sounds on the distance, slowly became stronger and stronger. "JJJauneeee" The voices kept saying. His mind was numb, but Jaune did recognize the voices, it was his friends. Ruby, Ren, Nora, Yang, Blake, Weiss, Oscar…Pyrrha. "JJJJAUNNNEEE" the voices became louder and closer to him. Without realizing it Jaune had stopped walking and fell to the front, hitting face first water he didn't even notice he was walking into and as he did, the voices became fainter and his vision went fully dark…

"Jan…Jaune…JAune…JAUNE!", Jaune heard as he woke up exalted and soaking wet. It was Dominique who held him in his arms while he was lying on the ground. "Jaune! Thank goodness! I thought you were a goner, lad..or a drowner?...Meh, forget it, Im glad you are ok, boy" Dominique said as Jaune breathed hard and looked at his surroundings. They were in a swamp in the middle of the woods standing on a little island in which Dominique had already settle a camp. They entered the woods at around 4pm but it was now the middle of the night.

"It´s ok, kid. Calm down, you are ok", Dominique said as Jaune started to relax a little, enough to start talking again.

"Py..Pyrrh…Wh…what was that?!" Jaune said, still breathing harshly.

"Ah…Well…" Dominique said a bit ashamed, "That was my Semblance…sorry…" Dominique stated while rubbing the back of his neck.

"WHAT?" Jaune said while freaking out.

Dominique tried to calm him down and explained to him "Yeah, My Semblance. Pretty strong don't you think? When I whistle anyone that hears the sound starts getting hallucinations, I don't control what they see but the longer they hear the more vivid they get until they eventually pass out"

Jaune sat down and massaged his nose's bridge "You got to be kidding me. But you weren't whistling!"

Dominique continued "Yeah, but you see, it also works when I play my flute. I started playing when we entered the forest and I think you heard for far too long. Now don't worry I have full control over it…it´s just that I sometimes let myself get carried away when I play the flute…Sorry"

"But…it´s been hours. How…Why didn't you stop? You didn't see me being affected? Jaune asked but the answer he got wasn't any less frustrating.

"Well, the thing is that I may also be a ** _cough_** ffected a little by it…Anyways! Time for dinner, Ill get to it, you can just relax, buddy, you had a rough day" Dominique said quickly as he tried to change the subject.

Jaune laid back down and with his arm placed over his eyes said to himself "What did I get myself into?!"

* * *

The morning came and Jaune woke up covered in mosquitoes. He stood up quickly shaking them off in a frenzy and running to the muddy water. Most of the mosquitoes just left but a few stayed around flying over Jaune´s head and taking any chance they could to bite him. Jaune got out of the water and with a defeated early morning face he walked up to his master while slapping his own face as the mosquitoes kept biting him. There he was, the crazy old man who took him into this journey telling him he was a Legendary Huntsman, covered in mosquitoes from head to toe and swallowing a couple as he snorted. Jaune´s head was full of doubt about his new master. His stories started to sound fake and he hadn't even started the training he was promised.

Jaune contemplated taking his stuff and leave, reunite with his friends and go back to Vale, that was until he saw his arms and realized of a pressure on his head. The upper part of his arms and his forehead were covered in bandages, when he took one of the arm ones off he realized that he was full of cuts, he remembered seeing them the night before when he woke up from his trance, but was so tired he didn't pay much attention to them, Jaune couldn't remember getting hurt but realized that he must have gotten injured while walking through the forest and swamp under the effect of Dominique´s Semblance. The bandages though weren't there when he fell asleep.

Dominique had actually taken care of Jaune´s injuries while he was asleep, it was something he didn't have to do as Jaune´s aura was more than enough to heal all his wounds, he could have done that once he woke up, it wasn't necessary and still. Realizing this Jaune also noticed that he slept covered in Dominique´s cape which is why he didn't feel cold even though his hoodie was wet. Jaune´s doubts over his master were still there, but the more he thought about it the more he realized of something, Dominique wasn't a bad person. He was still a Huntsman from which he could learn a lot. He wasn't ill intentioned at all and in fact he did had an honest will to help others. That´s something that Jaune saw as extremely valuable as that was his desire as well, to help others.

Jaune took a near by bucket that was floating in the swamp, filled it with water and decided to take a little bit of revenge on his master. He poured the cold water on Dominique who woke up suddenly yelling "AH SON OF A…JAUNE?! What is wrong with you?!". "You were covered in mosquitoes, Master! I just had to help!" Jaune replied with a grin on his face.

During breakfast, Dominique took the chance to apologize to Jaune for what happened the night before "Listen, kid…I, Im really sorry for what happened, you could have gotten really hurt and…That really wasn't my intention" Jaune stopped him, at this point he had already forgiven Dominique which is why he told him "It´s ok, Mr Cervantes. Im fine now and besides, this will be a good story, right?". Dominique laughed a little and replied "Well, it will be a story that´s for sure, but for it to be a good story it needs something more memorable, something like…" His words were cut short when they both heard movement coming from the water. Whatever it was it was big but the fog surrounding them didn't let them see it. "Grab your things boy, lets see what we are going against".

Jaune and Dominique walked slowly through the swamp. Whatever they heard before seemed to be moving but not towards them, which made them think it may not have seen them. Jaune and Dominique started whispering to each other to avoid scaring the creature. "Over here" Dominique whispered.

Hidden behind tall grass, Jaune and Dominique saw the creature, a huge horse like being, completely black with a white bone mask covering its face and spreading all the way along its spine with multiple spikes on it. Its eyes were yellow, its mask had red stripes, there was no doubt of what type of creature it was.

"A Grimm" Jaune whispered with a worried face. But Dominique´s expression was different, he was exited.

"Not just any Grimm, lad. That is a Kelpie. Have you ever seen a more majestic steed before?" Dominique remarked; his eyes had a flame of admiration for the creature before them. He then turned to Jaune and continued, "Listen, Jaune. Let me tell you a story".

Jaune replied surprised and worried "What!? Now?!"

Dominique responded "Yes, now listen. When I was 25, I became know in south Mistral as The Black Horseman, the reason? I managed to tame and ride a Kelpie! And now, opportunity awaits you, my boy".

"Yeah, no, no, not at all. That did not happen, I don't believe you and I won't do…" Jaune said quickly in a panic but got interrupted by Dominique who put a rope in his hands and stood behind him graving his shoulders.

"You said it yourself, didn't you? We need a horse and there isn't better than that one. It´s easy, kid, just lasso its head and show dominance. The beast will respect you as its new master! Now go!" Dominique said right before pushing Jaune out of the tall grass.

"No! wait! Mr…Cer…Hi!" Jaune said as he saw the Kelpie notice him. Its attention fully placed on Jaune who stood shaking.

From behind the tall grass Dominique instructed Jaune "Now, kid! Lasso it!". Jaune swallowed a bit of saliva before shakenly making a knot. The Kelpie stood still, it seemed mostly curious. Jaune struggled but managed to make the knot and while closing his eyes he threw the lasso, to his surprise he actually caught one of the spikes in its head.

"I did it!" Jaune celebrated…prematurely of course.

The Kelpie started walking towards Jaune, vapor coming out of its nostrils.

"Uh, this might have been a bad idea" Said Dominique as the Kelpie kept approaching. Suddenly, from behind it, two more Kelpies came out of the tall grass. "Yep, this was a very bad idea".

"Mr. Cervantes? what do we do now? Mr Cervan…" Jaune asked, but as he turned Dominique had already started running away.

"RUN KID!" Dominique shouted to as he ran for his life.

"YOU BASTARD!" Jaune yelled at the fleeing old man.

The natural peace of the swamp was broken by the loud noises of an old man and a kid screaming and the angry sounds of the three Kelpies chasing them.

* * *

Later that day, Jaune and Dominique were covered in mud, bug bites and bruises but finally they saw signs of civilization.

"Aha! What did I tell you kid? It took three days, but we made it to a town! And is a big one, is pretty much a city". Dominique said proud of their accomplishment. However, his victory was short lived once Jaune realized that the city like town was in fact …a city.

"Is that…THAT'S ARGUS!" Jaune screamed as he fell to his knees. Three days of journey and they were back at the beginning.

"Huh. I see" Dominique said while rubbing his beard and with a serious tone he told his apprentice "Jaune…I think we might need a map".

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for reading chapter 2. I really appreciate it. Just like last time, I would really appreciate any comments and critism. As stated before, this is my very first fanfiction and I will like to make each chapter better than the previous one.
> 
> Bit of Lore: Dominique's Semblance is called "Delusion", the way it works is that by whistling or doing similar actions such as playing a flute, the user causes hallucinations to anyone that hears it, the longer they listen the more vivid the hallucinations and the hallucinations are not controlled by the user. Delusion doesnt discriminate between friend and foe, hallucinations last up to 5 minutes after the user has stopped whistling. Dominique is affected by his own Semblance but in a lower amount, using it in combat wont have major effects on him but the longer he uses it the more affected he gets. Delusion is based on the same side of Dominique's personality that is presented this chapter, his love for telling stories and for people to hear them. In the same way himself and other people lose themselves in his fantasy stories, everyone lose themselves when affected by "Delusion".


	3. The Inn of the Dead

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As the journey continues, Master and Apprentice beging to bond as many do, with stories of their past and gallons of beer.

**Chapter III**

**The Inn of the Dead**

Anima, a continent of immense dangers but also a holder of immense beauty. From the tropical shores to the deep green forests and snowy vales, Anima is a continent full of natural majesty. Such peace and tranquility were never seen inside the Kingdoms, nature can provide a sense of serenity that allows you to calm your heart and mind, flow as softly as the wind and grow slowly like the small sprouts that one day will become strong and imposing trees.

South of Lake Matsu, a small waterfall ran its course to a small lagoon and beside it Ruby was sitting on a rock, her eyes closed as she meditated as instructed by her mentor. Maria wasted no time on training Ruby, they were at a brief moment of peace but she knew it wouldn't last long. Ruby´s silver eyes were the only hope humanity had to survive the forces of darkness, and as a former Silver Eyes Warrior herself, it was her duty to pass down her teachings to the next generation of protectors of the innocent.

"Keep breathing, slowly. Focus on the sound of the water. Let your mind get clear of any thought" Maria said, but her apprentice wasn't much of the patient type.

"How much longer?" Ruby said while opening one of her eyes, just to be met with a hit on her head by Maria´s cane. "Ouch!".

"You are getting distracted" Maria responded with a serious tone and continued "Now, start over. Breath and clear your mind". Ruby stopped rubbing her head and nodded to her master, she closed her eyes again and did as told.

"We are bringers of light, Ruby. It is our duty to protect those who can't protect themselves. We protect not only their lives but their memories. It is that kindness, that joy and love what makes us strong. We treasure the memories of those we still stand with us and those who are gone and use them to defend everyone´s future." Maria explained as Ruby managed to clear her mind, feel the wind engulfing her body and hear the birds singing in the distance.

"What I want you to do is think of 3 of your dear memories. They don't have to be your dearest but they have to be strong enough to give your heart warm" Maria explained as she moved on to place three small cages around Ruby at a reasonable distance, each cage was placed in such way that she could only have 1 cage in her immediate field of view at the time.

"When I give you the signal, you will open and close your eyes quickly. Pay attention to your surroundings. Use your ears to locate your targets". Maria said. Ruby stood up in anticipation, but never losing focus, she had already thought of some of her happiest memories and she was holding them near her heart,

"Ready? Now!" Maria signaled to Ruby as she opened on of the small cages and ran to the next one. Form the cage a small Death Stalker ran in a frenzy, aiming straight to attack Ruby, but keeping her calm Ruby turned to the left towards the Grimm and opened her eyes. Her Silver eyes flashed with blinding light, disintegrating the small Death Stalker in an instant. Ruby closed her eyes as instructed and turned to another cage having heard it opening before. Opening her eyes once more silver light burned a second death stalker. For the third one, Ruby had to move faster, she heard wings flapping after the third cage was open. She followed the sound of the wings coming from behind and above her before opening her eyes, the light shining on a small Nevermore and turning it into ash.

"Nicely done, hothead. How do you feel?" Maria congratulated her student for a job well done.

"I feel great. I don't feel dizzy like I normally do" Ruby stated. Ever since she started using her Silver Eyes, she had the tendency to feel weak after each use, passing out on the more intense cases, but thanks to experience and training, she has been enduring this weakness more and more.

"Well, that's the idea. That is a technic my father called Silver Flash. It is basic Silver Eyes Warrior stuff. Basically, you reduce the tax of using your Silver Eyes by opening and closing your eyes quickly. The effect is reduced of course, you will only be able to affect around 3 Grimm at the time and they have to be at a short range but you will only feel tired the more you use it. You used 3 memories, but with time you will only need 1 strong one and simply blink to get the same result. Silver Flash will help you train your activation time as well. You told me how long you took to activate them with the Leviathan" Maria explained and she picked up her cages.

"Thank you. I really appreciate all your help" Ruby thanked her master who smiled before responding.

"Don't thank me. I mean I'm awesome at this teaching thing, but you aren't half bad either." Maria responded jokingly before asking "So tell me, what memories you used?"

"Oh. Well the first three that came to my head where: The night Weiss and I became friends, we had a bit of a rough start but that night she brought me a bit of coffee and we patched things out, she told me how she believed in me and that she would be the best teammate I would ever have, from then on we became best friends; The other one was when I became friends with my friend Penny, she was a…lonely and weird girl but had one of the purest heart I've ever seen. And the last one was the day I reunited with Jaune in Argus. At a time I was struggling to make friends at Beacon he became my first friend and as time passed we became closer and closer, but ever since the fall…he hasn't been well, which is why when I saw him at Argus I loved seeing him smile again, it was so long since I last saw him like that. Those are some of my dearest memories." Ruby answered with a smile and bit of nostalgia on her voice. Thinking about her friends and all the love she had for them and they had for her always filled her with joy.

Maria chuckled a little. She realized how much love Ruby held for her friends and as she said, it was that love, those memories what gave them strengths and with all the love she had Ruby was clearly the strongest person she had ever met.

"I remember that last one. The poor boy looked like he was going to cry. I wonder how he is doing" Maria remarked with a smile.

Ruby responded with a bit of an annoyed tone "Well he probably is lost in the middle of nowhere thanks to the lunatic you let him go with".

Maria laughed at the idea; she was open with how hilarious she thought Jaune´s situation was "Hahaha. Yeah most likely. But don't worry, Donny is not a lunatic. He is just enthusiastic…And reckless…And dumb…Well, very dumb, and…what's the word I'm looking for?"

"Nuts?" Ruby said in a sarcastic tone.

"There you go! But I wouldn't call him a lunatic." Maria said while chuckling but only got an annoyed look from her apprentice. "Oh relax. Your friend will be fine. Donny isn't a push over, you know? he might not look like it but he can handle himself in a fight. Besides I'm sure he has become more responsible with age".

* * *

"GIVE ME BACK MY HAT! YOU OVER SIZE STUFFED ANIMAL!" Dominique yelled while riding on the back of an Ursa, grabbing on to its neck. The Ursa had his hat on its mouth and was trying to shake him off violently. On a wild move, Dominique was sent flying in the air and landed hard on the ground. Jaune rushed to his master´s aid worried he might have gotten injured.

"Sir! Are you ok?" Jaune asked but before he could get an answer, the Ursa caught his attention. The Grimm, still with the hat in its mouth got ready to charge at the two huntsmen. Jaune got his shield ready to take the Ursa´s attack head on. The Ursa charged, savage rage could be seen in its face but before it reached them, Dominique stood up.

"Cover your ears, boy!" Dominique said. Realizing what he was about to do, Jaune quickly did as instructed and Dominique put his fingers in his mouth to let out a whistle. The Ursa was gaining speed but it suddenly made a quick shake with its head, affected by Dominique´s Semblance, it took a turn and charged straight to a nearby tree, slamming its head against it and falling to the ground. Jaune then took the change and stabbed the Grimm on the back of the head, killing it instantly. As the Ursa turned to dust, Dominique retrieved his hat and celebrated their victory.

"Haha! In your face you dirty hat stealer! That´s what you get for daring to challenge u…Arg" Dominique said, but his celebration was cut short due a painful feeling coming from his leg, he did get injure during the fight much to Jaune´s worry.

"Mr. Cervantes!" Jaune yelled as he rushed to help his master before he could fall to the ground again.

"I'm ok, kid. Arg... I guess I'm getting a little old, hehe" Dominique said with his usual joking voice.

"You have to sit down. I'll take care of it". Jaune told to his injured master as he sat him down on the floor. The wound was a rough bruise on the knee, when he fell, he slammed it with a rock he fell on to and while his aura prevented him from outright breaking it his old age made the wound still severe. At his age the wound would have caused permanent damage to Dominique´s leg. Fortunately, Jaune´s Semblance allowed him to boost a person´s aura to the extent of healing even mortal wounds. This surprised Dominique, it was the first time he had seen Jaune´s Semblance in action and was amazed at the strength of it as it completely healed his wound without even leaving any trace of it.

"Wow. Now that is a Semblance, kid. I feel amazing! So full of life!" Dominique said as he stood up and started flexing his arms.

"Thanks, I boosted your Aura to heal you so you might feel an energy rush for a while. Do me a favor and try not to use your Semblance. I almost died last time and I really don't want to know what it can do while it is like that" Jaune said to his master, but this just made him more excited for the potential of his apprentice.

"Haha! You really are full of surprises, my boy" Dominique said, his excitement gave him an idea, it's been a week since they have started their journey and Dominique was yet to fulfil one of his promises to Jaune, but that was about to change. "Tell you what kid, let's put this energy rush thing to good use" Dominque said to a confused Jaune. "Grab the bags and leave them over that tree, then bring your sword and meet me up that hill. We have some training to do!".

Jaune did as told, he left the bags below a tree and rushed up a hill to meet his master. His heart was beating fast. More than anything Jaune had been looking forward to learning combat from a Legendary Huntsman, and even though he no longer thought Dominique was such thing, personal training with a pro huntsman was an opportunity not many had and he needed. Jaune got to the top of the hill and there Dominique was waiting for him sitting under a single big tree with a smile on his face, it was clear he was also anticipating this moment.

Dominique stood up and instructed his student "Now, lad, walk over there and I'll stand on this side. Are you familiar with sparing matches?".

"Yes, Sir. We had that class at Beacon" Jaune answered, although he omitted the part where he was never good at it. Jaune´s memory of those days at Beacon started to cross his mind, the many times he fought the likes of Cardin and lost, but that was a long time ago, he wasn't going to let that thought distract him from his current match.

"Great, then I don't have much to explain. Get your sword up and come at me when you are ready. Let me see what you can do" Dominique said with confidence. On his right hand he held his sword, an arming sword with a short flat cross guard and a circular blunt pommel and on his left a circular shield made out of metal but painted brown as to make it look like wood but with a steel colored edge and on it painted in white, Dominque´s personal emblem, a burning windmill.

The two huntsmen adopted their initial stances. Shields up and swords ready.

Dominic shouted "Now!" and the match began. Jaune went straight for the offensive, slashing from the top on a downward angle. Dominic however didn't block the attack but rather evaded it doing a spin move, placing himself at the right position to strike Jaune on the shoulder. Jaune reacted quickly, parring Dominic´s strike with his sword but Dominic´s strike moved Jaune´s sword and he followed with a small jump and a shield strike, hitting Jaune on the shoulder with the edge of his shield.

"You are a tall guy, kid! Why did you bow that low?! DO I LOOK LIKE A QUEEN TO YOU?! Recover and try again!" Dominic instructed his student. Jaune backed out with his shield up and charged for a second attack. Jaune remembered his training with Pyrrha, shield up and putting his right foot forward he slashed with his sword from right to left and back again for a second strike, Dominic blocked both slashes and went for a thrust but Jaune quickly put his right foot back and blocked it. "Atta boy!" Dominique said impressed at his student´s defense.

Master and Student clashed a few more times. Jaune managed to block all the strikes Dominique delivered, but the Huntsman in turn swiftly danced in the battlefield, evading some attacks and blocking others. They continued for a few minutes before they backed off once more. Jaune waited to see Dominic´s next stance, while lacking in combat skill, Jaune was a talented strategist, given enough time he would be able to find his opponent´s weakness and exploit it…given enough time that is. Dominic didn't take another sword stance though, instead he placed his sword inside a socket in his round shield, "Now, lad…Bring it on!". Jaune took these words to heart and charged at his master, but was caught off guard by Dominique whose shield started transforming, the shield unfolded taking the form of a staff while the sword was taken to its tip, turning the weapons into a spear. Dominique charged at Jaune, thrusting his spear at him, Jaune was forced to stop right on his tracks to block the attack which Dominique took advantage of by spinning the spear striking with both ends of it. Jaune found himself cornered, the range of the spear was too long for him to retaliate and he had no choice but to keep his shield up and wait for an opening. Dominique however didn't give him such a chance, taking advantage of Jaune´s height, Dominique put the blunt end of his spear between his legs, bypassing his shield and with a sweeping move made him lose his balance and fall to the ground. Jaune tried to stand up but Dominque put his spear on the boy´s face. "And that wraps it up! Nicely done kid. Now I know what I'm working with".

With the sparing match over, Dominique helped Jaune stand up and together they walked back to their things and started setting everything for a short lunch break. Jaune was a bit uneasy, in his head he couldn't stop thinking that Dominique would be disappointed for his lack of combat skill, he didn't manage to land a single strike and lost the sparing match. His insecurity was noticeable but he needed to hear it from his master. Jaune approached Dominique who was busy collecting some rocks and putting them in small bags.

"I…Sir? Jaune said with a shy tone in his voice.

"Don" Dominique responded quickly. "You keep calling me Mr Cervantes or Sir. There is no need, kid. Loosen up a little. Call me Dominique or Don", Dominique reassured Jaune.

"Ha..Ok then, Don. I wanted to ask you, well…how did I do?", Jaune said still nervous.

Dominique stood up and with a smile on his face responded, "Well why don't you tell me?".

Jaune was a bit shocked, he really didn't know how to answer. In his head he saw all his actions as a complete failure. "I…well", he said.

"I, well" Dominique repeated on a mocking manner, "You got some confident issues kid, we gotta work on that too. You did a good job but I saw a few mistakes and I want you to realize what was it on your own".

Jaune started thinking, he saw everything as a failure but what were the specific moments in which he failed? He thought for a few seconds and started talking. "Well…I parried your first strike with my sword and…"

Dominique interrupted, "And you still didn't block my shield strike. That´s one of them. Keep going".

Jaune thought some more, "I couldn't reach you before you got your spear and afterwards, I couldn't get close". Dominique nodded "And how did it end?". Jaune immediately responded "I couldn't block your low sweep and lost balance".

Dominque slow clapped and explained, "Precisely. Kid, you have a very strong defense, I can see you have been countering your lack of agility with that, it is a fighting style rare to see now a days and while I enjoy the classics, there is a reason why huntsmen fight with more agility. Grimm will attack you from multiple directions and for as impressive as your defense is, you need to keep moving. You could have blocked my first strike with your shield instead of parring it with your sword, all you needed to do was move your body quickly instead of just your arms and I wouldn't have been able to shield bash you. You couldn't reach me before I got my spear because you weren't fast enough to close the gap and you lost balance because you decided to stand your ground and wait for an opening, but if you can't stand a ground, move and find another, also don't wait for openings, either make them with your own brute force or find them somewhere else. That´s what we are going to work on first, we will make you faster and teach you to move on the battlefield" Dominque ended, taking a bite out of the rabbit they had just cooked.

Jaune was a bit sadden, his fear was right, in his mind he did shame himself before the eyes of his master, but Dominique´s advice and will to help him reassured him that this journey was exactly what he needed to become stronger. But something was still on his mind. "Wait, what about me no being able to get close once you got your spear?" Jaune asked. Dominque then responded "Well you do lack range but that comes after, lad. For now, grab a bite, you need strength, the day isn't over and we have more training to do".

Jaune and Dominique enjoyed their lunch. While eating, Dominique decided to keep their conversation on theme.

"So, tell me, lad, who trained you? Your Dad, Grandfather? Crazy uncle? Or are you one of those fancy combat school kids?" Dominique asked before taking a drink of water.

Jaune shallowed his food and started answering with a smile "Ah, no I…actually didn't do any of those. I come from a family of heroes but none of them actually gave me any training and I never went to a combat school".

Dominique replied amazed "So from a family of heroes and you got into Beacon with no training? How on Remnant did you managed to do that?!". Dominique found it amazing, in his head the only possible way was that his student was incredibly talented, more than he was letting on to.

Jaune started to get nervous, for obvious reason he always kept secret how he got into Beacon. Faking his entrance documents wasn't something he was proud of and he didn't want Dominique to think less of him. He then answered quickly "I…a, that´s another story, let's not get into that, hehe".

"Ha, a humble one I see." Dominique replied much to Jaune´s relief.

Jaune continued "Actually, much of what I know I learned it from my partner, Pyrrha. She taught me as much as she could, we use to train together on the rooftop of the school. She uses to be sort of a celebrity, the untouchable girl of Sanctum Academy, she was even on the box of the Pumpkin Pete cereal! At a time not even, my parents believed in me, Pyrrha did. She didn't have to, but ever since we met, she was always there for me, helping me grow stronger every day". Jaune kept looking at his reflection on the water in his cup, nostalgically thinking of his dear friend.

Dominique looked straight at his student with a smile "Now THAT is a story, kid! You finally managed to tell one as it should! That Pyrrha sounds like quite the gal. Which one was it? Was she the same hyperactive rascal that ate my cheesecake?" Dominique answered, but he soon realized that the mood wasn't as joyful as he first thought once he heard Jaune´s response.

"No, she…Pyrrha …She is…gone…" Jaune said, his smile gone now as he was now looking at the ember left on their campfire, his eyes getting a bit teary.

Dominique immediately understood what he meant. "I'm sorry, Jaune. It must have been very difficult for you" he said to his student. realizing Jaune was watching the embers, Dominique tossed the rest of his water on them and turned them off, getting Jaune´s attention.

"Tell you what. Let's do as she did and make you grow stronger, stand up" Dominique said as he approached Jaune and tied the small bags of rocks to his belt. "You will now walk around with this. What am I saying? walking is for babies! I want you to run with those rocks, we need you to be a lighting on the battlefield!" Dominique said to his student.

"I…Yes, Sir! I mean…Don" Jaune replied as he got ready to resume his training.

"And where do you think you are going?" Dominique told Jaune with his arms crossed.

"I was going to go…" Jaune answered with a confused tone.

"Grab the bags, boy" Dominique instructed his apprentice.

"What? But…You said I didn't have to carry them if I told you a good story!" Jaune tried to reason his way out of more work by reminding Dominique of their previous deal, but he wasn't having any excuses.

"Yeah, but that was before I learned that you are as fast as a sloth. NOW is part of your training! Get to it! We have work to do!"

Jaune and Dominique spent the rest of the day training. Their focus was on increasing Jaune´s stamina and speed by running, something that may have been easier for Jaune had they not started doing it right after getting lunch. In Dominique´s defense, how was he supposed to know his student needed silly things like digesting?

* * *

The sun started to set as Jaune and Dominique finally made it to a small town. Starving, they decided to head to the Inn and get dinner before registering for their rooms.

Jaune was exhausted, his legs barely responded to him but it was a small fee to pay to become stronger, to fulfill his dream and becoming a true hero.

As they entered the Inn they were greeted by a short and a bit corpulent woman with dark skin. "Welcome to Magdalene´s Inn. Table for two?" the woman said to the traveling huntsmen. Dominique confirmed eagerly, and the woman took them to their table. The Inn was a small and comfortable place. The building was made of wood and was lighted by dust lamps, the main hall served as a bar and restaurant while the rooms where on the second floor. There was a small stage in which live music was being played and the entire area of the restaurant had a delicious aroma to it. Jaune and Dominique arrived to a booth table with upside down steel mugs on top of it and the woman handed them some menus.

"Good evening, gentlemen. I'm Magdalene, but you can call me Maggie. What can I get you?" The woman said, introducing herself to her customers. Jaune noticed that the woman introduced herself as Magdalene just like the name of the Inn. When he asked, Magdalene confirmed that she was actually the owner of the place.

"That´s right. Everything you see here was built by these two hands. Normally I'm over there at the bar, but we are short on staff for the time being" Maggie explained.

"So, you are the Queen of this castle! Then it is truly an honor!" Dominique said with enthusiasm which made Maggie chuckle. She then proceeded to offer the specials of the night, smoked pork chops with a side of mash potatoes and steamed vegetables, lemon chicken pasta with a side of garlic bread and what she called Maggie´s style eggplant lasagna.

"Everything sounds amazing!" Jaune said, his mouth started watering with just the thought of the meals Maggie described. He decided to try the lasagna while Don chose the pork chops. After a few minutes, Maggie came back with two bottles of beer.

"Oh, sorry we didn't order…"Jaune tried to explain, but he was met with a kind smile.

"This are on the house, sweety. I noticed your fancy gear, you two are huntsmen, aren't you? It´s been a while since we´ve seen some around and I always try to make sure to treat them well. Enjoy yourself, I'll be back with your dinner in a bit" Maggie replied and after Jaune and Don thanked her for her kindness she walked away back to work.

"Well, bottoms up!" Don said as he opened his bottle with the edge of the table, but Jaune was less enthusiastic.

"Ah, wait, I don't…" Jaune said nervously. "I actually have never drink before, I'm not even sure if it´s legal here" Jaune said while looking slightly to the side, but Don was not having it.

"What? For real? Not even with your old man? How old are you?" Don asked.

"I'm...", Jaune tried to respond but Don quickly interrupted him, not even waiting for an answer.

"That´s old enough!" he said as he opened Jaune´s bottle for him.

Jaune considered things and just decided to give it a try, what is one beer after all? He went for a sip from the bottle but Don stopped him immediately. "Stoopp, Stop, Stop STOP! What do you think you are doing?!" Don said in indignation as he took the bottle from Jaune´s hand and started pouring it in a mug "THIS is how you drink a beer, lad! From a mug like your ancestors! Here you go, now cheers!" he said as he passed Jaune the mug and he raised his own. Jaune looked at his mug with a bit of confusion but quickly decided to grab it and join his master.

"Cheers!" Jaune said before clashing his mug with his master and taking his first drink of alcohol. Of course, he wasn't able to handle the taste which resulted in Don bursting in laughter.

Jaune and Don started to chat, things were less formal between the two of them. It might have been the alcohol but Jaune was chattier than he normally was. Eventually they ate their meal and their mugs got empty but they just kept talking.

"Hahaha. Seriously? A white dress? Hahahaha! Oh man, why do we do such stupid things for women?" Dominique laughed as Jaune had finished his story.

"Come on, it made her happy! You should have seen her face. Plus, I have the legs to pull that off" Jaune replied as Maggie approached the table to pick up the plates.

"You two seem to be having fun. Is there anything else I can get you?" Maggie asked to her costumers.

"You know what? The night is young, lad, and I don't know about you but I'm having a blast. What do you say if we take a few more drinks? My treat of course". Dominique asked his student with a bit of a challenging tone.

Jaune wasn't sure at first but he was enjoying himself and it had been a while since he last had so much fun, "You know? Sure, let's do it!".

"That´s the spirit! Ma'am, we might need a jar or two here!" Don said with a big smile on his face.

The night went on and master and apprentice kept chatting, laughing and drinking. With each drink Jaune got more and more use to the taste and started to enjoy it, although the effects of the alcohol were starting to hit him without him noticing.

"Haha! 50 boxes of Pumpkin Pete for a hoodie!? Man, that better be a really good hoodie cause that cereal is terrible!" Dominique said, the drunker he got the louder he laughed.

"Oh, as if you have never done something dumb for clothes! Mr rode an Ursa and almost died for a hat!" Jaune said taunting his master as he took another swing of beer.

"Hey! Do you have any idea since what generation this hat has been in the Cervantes family?!" Dominique said faking anger.

"Since yours?" Jaune said sarcastically.

"Precisely! And let me tell you, that is at LEAST the third best one!" Dominique said proudly as he finished his drink. "Now, tell me. What is the story behind you and your friends? How did a party of young Huntsmen from Beacon ended up as far as Atlas! Are you some sort of elite group or something?" Dominique asked, he was curious, he knew there must have been something important for Maria to decide to join them but up until that point he just thought they were talented students looking to make a difference.

Jaune was a little bit dizzy, he never told Dominique about their real mission but at the time it may have been the alcohol that made him talk "No, no. We are just students. And we are just on a secret mission to save the world from an immortal magical witch that controls all Grimm. The headmaster of Beacon was kind of sketchy and hid that he can reincarnate and that his ex-wife became immortal after she defied the Gods of Light and Darkness who killed all of humanity. We are trying to collect a bunch of artifacts before she does because they can be used to bring the Gods back and then they most likely will kill us all ag…" Jaune stopped as he realized that he had been talking out loud all this time. He thought of trying to save it by claiming it was a joke but surely Don wouldn't believe all that nonsense anyways…or so he thought.

Don´s face was full of shock, his eyes wide open and his jaw almost hit the floor. He didn't even notice he had dropped his mug and as a reactionary movement he took the jar of beer and chugged the little bit left in it.

"I…Look it was just a jo.." Jaune tried to say, but Don was quick to interrupt him.

"The Gods…And a witch and…The end of the WORLD?!…..WHAT THE HELL!?" Don yelled making some costumers turn their heads. As Don held his head on the table, Jaune was quick to silence him.

"Shhhh. Shup up! No one is supposed to know!" Jaune whispered desperately trying to get his master to calm down.

"Maggie! We need another round! I'm begging you!" Don said frenetically as he ordered some more valor juice to endure this.

Dominique chugged another mug of beer before finally calming down. As he recovered his breath he said "So… The Gods are real, and it will be the end of the world if this immortal witch isn't stopped? No wonder Maria wanted to get involved. Damnit, I should have known she´ll be fighting something like this!".

Jaune put a bit of an ashamed face before replying "I'm sorry. I really shouldn't have told you; it is supposed to be a secret. If news of these spreads out…"

Dominique interrupted "It´s ok, kid, I understand. Mass panic will just make tensions on the Kingdoms even worse than they have been lately. Your secret is safe with me".

Jaune smiled, he was relieved that Dominique seemed to be very trust worthy. Thinking of the mission he had been involved with, the threat he and his friends have been facing brought many memories back, plenty of which were very painful to him.

Dominique noticed how Jaune´s expression changed from a happy smile to a face of remorse as he once again looked at his reflection in his drink.

"You are thinking about her again, aren't you?" Dominique asked on a serious tone, he had known Jaune for a short time but he could already tell that his heart had wounds still open.

"I…" Jaune began to say, thinking he had bothered his mentor. But Dominique genuinely wanted to help him.

"You can talk with me, kid. Don´t keep it to yourself, it would only hurt more. This mission…Your friend fell because of it, didn't she?" Dominique asked with care in his voice.

Jaune grabbed his mug tightly before answering. "Yes. She did. Pyrrha…She gave her life trying to protect us all at Beacon. She gave it her all because she knew she was the only one who could try. Ruby tried to help her, she ran as fast as she could…and in the meantime there I was, too stupid to think of anything, too weak to even try to do…something. Sometimes it doesn't feel real. I just…Ever since that day, I´ve been thinking on doing the same, give my life and protect those strong enough to bring a new tomorrow…Maybe if I do, I'll be able to see her again…"

"That´s enough, kid" Dominique stopped him, his tone serious and his gaze straight on him. "You think that´s noble? That that is the honorable way to go? And that you are somehow honoring her memory? It might sound like it, boy, but believe me when I tell you that you couldn't be more wrong. Trust me kid, I know how is like to lose a love one and think you have failed them. That pain and emptiness in your heart, that unbearable guilt. But throwing away your life is disrespectful to what she fought for. Death is the destination that awaits us all but what is truly important is not how you die, it's the road you take in life and in it you must fall, stand up, persevere and learn. You have a duty, to carry her memories and to wake up every morning determine to make things right, or at the very least you are obligated to try. And I believe you can do it, my boy, you are the shield that will protect the innocent, and as such you will not fall. I know that you have what it takes to face the Gods themselves and yell HERE I STAND! I see a flame in you, Jaune, but the question is, can you see it too?".

Jaune got teary eyed. He couldn't hide how much he truly valued those words. As he washed his tears out, he looked at Dominique and responded with a sincere "Thank you".

Jaune had a lot to reflect about. His actions, his situation, Dominique´s question started to resound in his head. Could he see a flame in himself? He struggled to find an answer, his head and heart filled with doubts, but there was one thing he didn't doubt anymore, getting in this trip wasn't a bad idea after all.

"Oh, you mentioned someone you lost too." Jaune asked.

"Yeah" Dominique responded with nostalgia and a bit of sadness in his voice, "My older brother, Miguel. I think of him every day".

Jaune poured more beer on each of their mugs and raised his for a toast.

"To Pyrrha and Miguel", Jaune said.

Don was a bit surprised but with a smile replied "For those who are no longer here, and yet…They are".

* * *

As the night went on, Jaune and Dominique kept drinking more and more and more. The Inn´s restaurant got empty, the band had stopped playing hours ago and everyone that was left was either passed out at the bar or the floor. Jaune had his face placed on the table while Dominique could barely talk.

"ANotHer, RoUnd! MA..!" Don said but Maggie was done for the night.

"I think you two had enough, grandpa" Maggie said as she put the 4 empty jars of beer on her tray.

Suddenly a group of people entered the Inn. They were noisy and rather rude. The group was rather large, around 4 men and 5 women, most of them with scars on their arms and face. A couple of them were faunus with sharp teeth, horns or claws. They approached the bar demanding booze.

"Ugh. Not them again" Maggie said with an annoyed voice.

"WhAt?" Jaune answered.

"They are from a gang of bandits that camps nearby in the mountains. They come down here once in a while to cause trouble." Maggie said. Her usual method of handling bandits was not show submission or fear but also serving the food and booze they looked for, just to avoid any trouble. However…that wasn´t going to be the case tonight.

"BAndits, YoU ssaY! HOw DARE THey?! DOnt vOrry, mY Queen! WE´ll tAke CarE oF ThEm!" Dominique said as he stood up with a lot of difficulty.

Behind him, Jaune also stood up with a lot of bravery…I mean drunkenness, in his heart.

"YeAh!DOn´t WorRy. MA LADY!" Jaune said as he ran after Dominique.

"Wait! What the hell are you doing?!" Maggie said in a panic.

Don and Jaune struggled their way to the bandits, ready to fight for the honor of the Inn and it´s keeper. The Bandits initially laughed at their drunkenness, Jaune could barely stand and Don at first was threatening a pillar. Things got more serious thought when during his threats Don mentioned that they were huntsmen.

"Huntsmen?!" one of the Bandits said before they all stood up menacingly.

Jaune was overly confident thanks to the alcohol in his blood. Preparing to throw a punch he said "YEah! And wE ArE GoIng tO..." but before he could finish, Jaune was met with a fist to the face. It appeared that in his drunken state he forgot to activate his aura. Jaune´s vision went completely black as he fell down to ground.

* * *

The next morning the sun hit Jaune´s face like a knife. His vision was blurry but he could feel the ground and mud bellow him. He sat down and realized they were outside at around a block away from the Inn and Don was passed out next to him. He woke him up and told him where they were. Suddenly, Jaune and Don realized something, their bags were missing, their money and weapons were gone, they even took Don´s hat and Jaune´s right boot.

"THOSE BASTARDS ROBB…!" They yelled, but their own screams hit them like a truck because of their hangover. They fell back to the ground and agreed to take care of it after the sound of their own voices didn't make them, you know...want to kill themselves.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading. As always, I would appreciate any critism and receive them with open arms.
> 
> A bit of lore: Dominique's weapon, "Rocinante" (Named after Don Quixote´s horse), are a sword and circular shield able to combine into a spear. For those who care a bit about weapon taxonomy, Rocinante's spear mode is technically what is known as a "Swordstaff", a type of polearm that is, as its name says, a staff with a sword attached at the end, in this case is more similar to the Scandinavian version with a crossguarded arming sword. Being that said, from this point onward it will be refered to as a "Spear" for the sake of simplicity and because that's the weapon Quixote used. And for those wondering why native language) and that's how I read it and in Spanish the word for Lance and Spear is the same "Lanza", so Ill use "Spear" out of personal preference.


	4. Dreams Asleep

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The heroes hit their first major road block and dark thoughts are quick to cover their hearts.

**Chapter IV**

**Dreams Asleep**

Have you ever had one of those mornings in which there is so much peace and quiet, even the birds much rather stay in bed than sing? Yeah, this wasn't one of those mornings…

"BBBBLLAAARGHH!" was the only sound the locals were waking up to as Jaune vomited by a tree after his first night of drinking. His hands placed on the tree and his head leaning down, the poor boy had tears in his eyes, he was missing a boot and was covered in mud and puke, it really wasn't a pretty sight.

"How do you do it, Qro…BBBLLARGGH!" Jaune tried to say to himself but his body wasn't being kind to him.

Dominique arrived with an old wooden bucket full of water and a broken plastic cup. "Wow. Haha. You took it all out of your system already?" Dominique said with a bit of a smile as he poured water for his apprentice.

"I'm pretty sure that´s my kidney right there" Jaune responded, his head still hanging and with a defeated expression in his face. With weakness, he stood up and reached for the cup of water with his shaking hands.

Dominique crossed his arms and with an expression of disbelief he continued "Ah, come on kid, we just had a couple of beers!"

Jaune nearly choked with the water after hearing that comment and after coughing a bit he replied with anger, "I TOLD YOU I´VE NEVER HAD IT BEFORE!".

Still with his arms crossed, Dominique closed his eyes and said "That´s no excuse. You kids these days are just too soft". He then put on a big smile and with his hands proudly on his hips he continued taunting his student "You lack the strength, the might! Of my generation! Just look at me! I can withstand the harshest and meanest things life can throws at…AH!". Dominique said; however, his glorious speech was cut short by Jaune who without him noticing had stood up and whistled with his fingers in his mouth right next to Don´s ear. "Why do you have to be so mean?!" Don whimpered as he crouched with teary eyes and held his pained hangover head.

Jaune drank as much water as he could and poured the rest of the bucket on himself to wash away the vomit and mud a little. Tossing the bucket aside he started walking away much to Don´s confusion.

"Hey! Where are you going?" Dominique said as his apprentice walked away.

"To the Inn. Maybe our stuff is still there, I don't know! Is better than sitting here all day! OUCH!" Jaune replied right as he stepped on a rock with his bare foot.

Jaune and Don headed back to the Inn, it was just a few blocks away but they didn't recognize anything in broad day light, they didn't even remember how they got that far away from the Inn in the first place. On their way, Don started noticing the state of the town, it clearly had seen better days. The buildings were made of wood and stones, but they seemed fairly old, many of them were damaged, broken wood parts, doors about to fall off, stores with broken signs, some buildings even had holes on their walls. The street wasn't much better. Dirt roads mostly mudded, dirty water puddles and garbage on every corner. But what caught Don´s attention the most were the expression of the town folk, many had a constant expression of anger, even more had sad eyes, an aura of defeat and apathy could be felt just by seeing their faces. Even the kids lacked their innocent smiles, instead most of them looked just as apathic as their parents. Don noticed a small faunus girl with a bunny doll in hand, her dog ears moved with curiosity as she saw Don waving at her with a kind smile, to his joy the girl started waving back with a shy smile but this gesture turned awkward to him when her mother quickly took her back inside their house. Jaune didn't pay attention to any of this, he was mostly worried about getting to the Inn as soon as possible, hopeful that his sword was still there waiting for him.

As they made it the Inn, the huntsmen encountered the aftermath of their…heroic battle. Broken tables and chairs were scattered around the restaurant. A candelabra had one of its chains broken and was swinging back and forward. Broken glass was spread on the bar and the distinct odor of dried beer impregnated the place.

"Oh, NO! YOU TWO, GET OUT OF MY INN!" Maggie yelled as soon as she spotted the huntsmen entering her local. "I do NOT need more of your dumb ideas! Get out!" She continued, as she angrily waved a broom at the men.

"I…Im so sorry! We just wanted to see if we left our stuff here!" Jaune nervously tried to explain to the angry innkeeper as she waved her broom on his face.

"Ha! Well, tough luck, buddy. Jessie´s gang took it all, and MY cash! The only thing left is that tooth pick your grandpa threw at the ceiling!" Maggie said with a sarcastic tone as she pointed to Dominique´s spear stuck on the bar´s ceiling.

"My Baby!" Dominique said, hopping with happiness as he ran to the bar and started stacking chairs to reach his spear. "Don't worry! I'll save you!".

Jaune grabbed his head in sadness and said to himself, "Ahh, so they did take everything! That sword was a family heirloom!".

Maggie, still angry, smacked Jaune in the head with her broom and continued scolding him "Oh cry me a river! Poor little fancy lad lost his toy. Meanwhile I have to deal with your mess! You own me, boy! For the damage and you didn't even pay your bill last night!".

Jaune´s face showed a lot of shame as he said to the innkeeper, "I'm so, so sorry ma´am, you have no idea how much I am. But we don't have any money, they took it all, even our supplies, everything. Please believe me, If there was a way I could make it up to you, I would".

Maggie let out a sigh, she saw that the boy was truly ashamed of what he did, and considering he was also in a bad situation, she tried to calm down. "You really are a screw up aren´t you? Ok, if you are really sorry, I'll tell you what. I´m short on staff around here. You want to pay your debt? From now on, you and geezer prince charming over there work for me".

Jaune was caught off guard by this offer and was reluctant to accept, they couldn't stay in this town too long. He had to meet Ruby to go back to Vale. But on the other hand, they didn't have any supplies either. Penniless, weaponless, foodless, everywhere he saw it, they were stuck in this town until they could get back on their feet. "I…fine, we´ll do it" Jaune said as he went to shake the hand of his new boss.

"We have a deal then. Go take a shower on the back, you reek of vomit and I won't have you serving food like that. I'll go get you some clean clothes" Maggie said with her broom on her shoulder.

"Thank you, ma´am! You won't regret it!" Jaune said right as Don managed to unstuck his spear from the ceiling, loudly falling down on top of the stack of chairs he was using as a ladder.

"I'm ok!

Maggie face palmed at the sight of the old man on her floor. "Man, you two suck at this hero thing!".

* * *

After a merciful shower, Jaune and Don were dressed with waiter uniforms and began their new job at Magdalene´s Inn. Their first task of course was to clean up the mess they caused after their latest attempt for a heroic deed. The restaurant wasn't as visited as they thought it would be, which was great for them as they could get the hang of their job, and after Don spilled a hot bowl of oat meal on a costumer and Jaune got bitten by a kid, everyone could agree they needed that time to learn.

Lunch time came and still, not many costumers arrived at the restaurant. For what they had seen, it seemed like dinner time was the busiest hour. Jaune tried to quickly serve the guests as to improve his service. Meanwhile, Don was still noticing something off with the town folk. The few costumers that arrived had that same expression of defeat and apathy he noticed earlier. They came in, ordered, didn't even say hello and left, all with an empty look in their eyes. Don couldn't stop thinking about it and decided to ask the cook, a big, hairy, muscular boar faunus with tusks in his mouth named Cronan.

"Hey, buddy? How is it going?" Don said putting his hands on Cronan´s shoulders acting familiar with the cook even though they just met a few hours ago.

Cronan reacted annoyed, he was a serious and scary man and there was nothing he hated more than being bothered while cooking…or in general for that matter. "Get your hands off me or Ill grill them, old man" Cronan said with his deep voice as he cut a chicken with a meat cleaver.

Don did as told but he didn't get any less friendly, leaning on the counter next to the grill and trying to start a conversation with Cronan. "Chicken, ah! That´s good, that´s good…. Are you…going to put Paprika in it?"

Cronan´s answer was merely strongly chopping the chicken with his cleaver. The more pissed he got the harder he chopped.

"Yeah… So anyways. Can I ask you a question?"

"Get lost". Cronan replied, another hard chop shacked the table.

"Listen, I've seen that people around here lack a certain…spark. Is there something going on? Some villain to defeat? A vicious monster to slay?!".

"Don't know. Don't care" Cronan answered as he ripped apart the chicken.

Don persisted "You see, that's the thing. They all have that look of not caring about…well anything. It´s odd".

Cronan put the chicken on a tray and started peeling some potatoes as he answered "Why should they? We live in a town in the middle of nowhere. Forgotten by the world and constantly getting harassed by bandits and Grimm. You get used to it".

Don was surprised by the answer, standing up he got a bit closer to the cook. "Come on! You can't live life like that! Your town is in the beautiful country side! What´s not to love about it? Come on, why don't you give me a big smile!" Don said as he grabbed Cronan´s face and tried to put a smile on his face. Cronan put his potato and peeler away, with his eyes wide opened he grabbed Don by the wrists and put his hands on the hot grill. "AAAAAAAAHHHHHH!".

* * *

"What were you thinking?!" Jaune said to his master as he used his semblance to heal his burned hands.

"I just wanted to make a friend!" Don responded; his eyes glossy like a child who just got yelled at. He then tried to explain himself to his student. "There is something wrong with this town, kid. Can't you see it? I was just trying to understand what is it".

Jaune didn't understand at first, but after Don pointed out the faces of the town folk, he started to see the same signs Don was talking about. He now saw the gloomy aura, the general sense of sadness that surrounded the area. He didn't have much time to think about it when a short old lady approached them.

"Excuse me, young man. What exactly are you doing?" The old lady said, her back hunched and with a cane in hand, she kept pointing at Jaune´s glowing hands.

Jaune got a bit surprised, his treatment of Don´s wounds was done so he backed off and addressed the old lady. "Oh, I…It´s my semblance, I can heal people with it".

The old lady grabbed Jaune´s hand with her two hands, she was clearly excited "Oh, joy! Miracle hands! If it´s not much trouble, could you heal an old woman?". The old lady asked.

Jaune accepted, he wasn't about to refuse to aid an innocent elderly woman. He asked what she wanted him to heal, but to his surprise, the woman sat on a stool and took her shoe off. "You see, I've had this gross rash in my foot for a couple of months now and…", The old woman started saying as Jaune and Don covered their mouths in disgust. Thankfully, Maggie rushed to their rescue and interrupted her.

"Ruth! What are you doing?! People eat here!" Maggie said to the old woman who explained that Jaune offered himself to cure her using his semblance. Rubbing her bridge, Maggie ordered Jaune to take the old lady Ruth outside the restaurant if he was going to help her.

* * *

Jaune and Ruth sat on a bench outside the Inn. The old lady was joyful, she hadn't felt such relieve in moths. Meanwhile, Jaune was facing away trying his best to avoid seeing the rash again. In doing so, Jaune remembered his conversation with Don and started to look around the town itself to see if the same pattern continued, and to his surprise, it did. He kept seeing the same faces of sadness all around. In his curiosity, trying to do small talk but also in his search for answers, he asked the old lady, "So. Why didn't you get this treated earlier?"

Ruth, who had a big pleasured smile, responded "Well, we really don't have much of a medical facility, sweetie. Our nursery has been having troubles ever since the local doctor left months ago to work at Argus".

"The doctor just left out of nowhere?"

Ruth nodded, her smile changed into a sorrow look "It hasn't been a good couple of years, and lately things just get worst and worst. Every now and then a new gang of bandits claims this town as their territory, and the Grimm certainly aren't helping. Those who can, just leave the town, searching for a future. The rest of us, well…".

Jaune started to understand what was happening. He continued seeing the town people, many of them were just sitting around doing nothing. The town had many businesses but no one was in them, the few that had people in were mostly sleeping on the counters, and more curiously, many of the stores had signs putting the place on sale and for the looks of it, they had been like that for a while.

* * *

Their first day of work ended late at night. As they had imagined, dinner time was the busiest at the Inn. Tiered Jaune and Don decided to make a made shift camp on a hill using nothing but some trash they found lying around. As they set up the campfire they started talking.

"You saw it, right? Tell me I'm not crazy" Don said as he put some pieces of timber in the floor for Jaune to turn on the campfire.

"Well, you are. But you are also right. The people have been leaving the town in mass, and the few that are left…It´s like they just gave up on it". Jaune said, the fire finally igniting, he then sat down and started trying on an old shoe he found amongst the trash. "The old lady told me that gangs have been fighting over the town"

"Huh, not surprising. Remember what Maggie told us? Huntsmen haven't been visiting the town in a while, and being this far away from the main kingdom…" Don said as he used a stick to move the embers.

"No one can do anything". Jaune said, the shoe fitting perfectly on his foot. "Those who tried probably ended up dead, and after a while…No one cared anymore".

"You know what I see, kid? I see is a town in need of help, my boy." Don said as he sat down on a log, pointing his burning stick at Jaune.

"Yeah? and how do you pretend to do that? I don't know if you noticed but we are not exactly in the best shape to help anyone right now", Jaune said with a bit of a sarcastic tone, still frustrated at the loss of his sword he looked at the side murmuring "Not like we would be able to do anything anyways".

"Then let's start there! Come on, kid. Having a day job doesn't mean you can forget about your training. Stand up!" Dominique said as he stood up ready for some training.

Jaune however, wasn't exactly in the best mood. Mad at himself and exhausted. His eyes kept closing on their own and he started yawning "It was a long day. I really don't feel like it. Maybe tomorrow if we have time." He said as he walked inside the tent they made out of a garbage bag.

Don was annoyed at this comment. Not feeling like it? If they had time!? What sort of attitude was that? They were going to spend all day working again, and he wasn't about to spend the rest of his days serving omelets. That wasn't his true calling and neither was his apprentice´s. Dominique grabbed an old notebook that was amongst the garbage and pulled out a pen from his pocket. He then started to write down until late at night.

* * *

As morning approached, Jaune was woken up by a kind whisper in his ear "Jaune...Jaaauune…JAUNE!" Don yelled in his apprentice´s ear who jumped out of the garbage bag he was using as a blanked. "Rise and shine! Squire!" Dominique said to a drowsy Jaune.

Jaune rubbed his face asking "What…What time is it? Is still dark!".

"It´s 04:00 am, lad. Time for our morning exercise!" Dominique said proudly with a hand on his hips and the other showing his notebook.

"You said it yourself. We can only train if we have time and there is no time like now! so I decided to put you on a morning regimen before work, now get up!".

Jaune woke up reluctantly, he almost fell asleep again while doing stretches. Don made him do some jumping jacks to warm up and get the blood flowing, But Jaune´s enthusiasm just kept lowering more and more.

"Now, let's begin with some hand to hand combat, shall we?" Don said as he got his fists ready.

Jaune kept rubbing his face, he was a bit confused as to why hand to hand combat but too drowsy to think further.

"Well is not like you have a sword right now, do you?" Don pointed out much to Jaune´s annoyance.

"Don't remind me" He said in frustration.

"Well, then you have to fight with what you have. Come on! Fists up!" Don instructed, hopping left and right ready for battle.

Jaune took his stance, fists up but his eyes were still shutting on their own. That was until he was met with a punch to the face. "Wake up, already!", Don said enthusiastically, but right after that he started looking at his apprentice top to bottom.

Jaune snapped out of it and took his stance again. Don then stopped and started correcting Jaune´s stance. His feet were misplaced, his fists were in a weird position, it was clear the kid had never been in a fist fight before. Seeing this, Don instructed him to throw a punch and much to his disappointment, Jaune threw the weakest weirdly moving punch he had ever seen. Shaking his head, Don realized that Jaune wasn't ready for a sparing match so instead he decided to start with the basics and teach him how to properly throw a punch. He asked him to mimic his movements and repeat the same motion over and over and over again as for him to start developing muscle memory. Luckily, Jaune had always been a fast learner, he quickly got the hang of it and Don started to teach him some sequences. Starting slowly but gradually increasing speed.

"Again! Right, Left, Uppercut! Too slow! Again! Keep it up! Do not lose control! Focus! Again!" Don kept instructing. They continued for the next two hours, taking short breaks for Jaune to catch up his breath. Before finishing, Don decided to give another try to the sparing match.

"Gloves off, kid. Now do the sequence, but analyze the fight and act accordingly" Don instructed as his guard was up. Jaune took his gloves off and after putting his guard up he launched his attack. Right punch, left punch, uppercut. Don blocked the punches and evaded the uppercut; he liked the strength of the punches he managed to deliver. "Atta boy, again!" he said. Jaune kept repeating the sequence, essentially going with the motions, he was developing the muscle memory Don wanted but this came with a drawback. As Jaune launched his next attack, he was surprised when Don blocked his right punch with his right arm and quickly followed with a punch with his left, knocking Jaune to the ground.

"I told you to analyze the fight, kid. I'm not teaching you a sequence so that you fight like a robot. Muscle memory is important, but don't become predictable!" Don said firmly as he went to help his student stand up. However, to his surprise, Jaune refused his help, deciding to stand up on his own. Jaune seemed upset, but what caught Don´s attention the most was when he spat out blood to the ground.

"I guess, we are done for the day. Come on, it´s about time we head to work. Don't think you are off the hook though. We are running to the Inn" Don said in a serious tone, as he turned off the campfire with dirt.

* * *

On their morning jog, Don was still troubled by the looks the town folk gave them, but Jaune once again didn't pay attention to it, much to Don´s annoyance. Jaune kept sulking, his mind was still lost in his troubled thoughts. He felt like every mistake he had ever done had led to this situation, stuck in a ghost town, living in the trash. The lost of his sword was particularly upsetting to him, after all, it wasn't just a family heirloom, he had used what he could find of Pyrrha´s armor to upgrade it. In a sense, that sword was a token of Pyrrha´s feelings. When he wielded it, Jaune felt as if she was still lending him her strength, her support. And now it was gone. Lost to his own stupidity and failure. Maybe it was for the best; a fool like him didn't deserve that strength. A fool like him deserved to be there, in the middle of nowhere, forgotten.

As they approached the Inn, Jaune´s attention was caught by the sound of coughing. It was the little faunus girl with her mother. Jaune stopped, curious at the sight of the mother sitting on a chair in their porch tending to her daughter as she kept coughing. The mother had bags on her eyes as if she had been awake all night, probably taking care of the little girl. When the girl noticed Jaune standing there, she once again waved with a shy smile, but this was cut short by her cough. The mother stared at Jaune with vigilant eyes. The moment ended when Don who had run ahead noticed Jaune standing back and called his name. Jaune resumed his jog, leaving behind the little faunus girl, bunny doll in hand and a constant cough.

* * *

It's been 4 days since Jaune and Don started working at Magdalene´s Inn and as usual, the place was slow in activity. Don had been continuing Jaune´s training early in the mornings. His hand to hand combat skills started to improve, but Don still noticed Jaune´s lack of enthusiasm. The kid had grown even more bitter, even more sarcastic, he kept complaining about their current situation but most notably, Don started to see him getting more injured during their training sessions.

Magdalene, was a firm boss. Work might be slow during the day but that didn't mean she allowed slackers. Since breakfast time was done and Cronan was getting everything ready for lunch, Maggie put Jaune and Don on repair duty, fixing a broken window in the first floor left there by some drunk the night before.

"Carefull there, kid, I don't want you to smash the glass and leave blood all over my window" Maggie said, as she stood outside the Inn. Don and Jaune were on ladders outside putting the crystal in place. A man saw the job and approached Maggie.

"Morning, Maggie. That´s a fine work. Who are the handymen?" the man said as he looked up protecting his eyes from the sun.

"My new employees, David. You'll know that if you came visit more often" Maggie responded sarcastically crossing her arms.

The man chuckled a bit "Sorry, sorry. I've been sick. You know, I could use a hand repairing the roof of my house. The rains are coming and it wouldn't hurt to wake up dry for a change. You mind if I borrow them?"

Jaune and Don overheard the conversation as they came down of the ladders.

"I don't know. They own me a lot of money and I much rather keep them were I can see them" Maggi said but the man tried to insist.

"Hello, good sir, what seems to be the problem?" Don said, his head up with his characteristic chivalrous tone.

"I would like to offer you a repair job" the man said, but he was quickly interrupted by a protective Maggie.

"And I said, no, I'm sorry. I need them both here".

Don started rubbing his beard, a clear sign that he was getting an idea, he took a quick glance at Jaune and approached Maggie. "Ma´am, could I have a word with you, please?" He said as he grabbed Maggie's hand and walked her away from the area. They talked for a bit, Maggie at first was on the fence but the more Don talked with excitement the more she seemed to be getting convinced. They returned after a few minutes with big smiles on their faces.

"Ok, David, here is the deal. You can rent the kid for the day" Maggie said putting her hand on Jaune´s shoulder.

"Rent me?!" Jaune answered in surprise.

"That´s right. You still work for me, but from now on Ill be renting you for any job people need. Payment goes to your debt of course. Just make sure to come back at sunset. I need you for dinner time" Maggie explained.

Don put his hand on Jaune´s other shoulder and continued "And I couldn't leave Madam Magdalene alone, so Ill stay at the restaurant. But! Here is my condition. I demand to take you to your work place myself!"

Jaune had a concerned face as he asked "Why?"

Don jumped with excitement and pointed at Jaune´s face, "Because whatever job you have to do. Ill turn it into training, my boy! I intend on making every job as physically demanding as possible! I told you before, didn't I? You are not off the hook!"

Maggie smiled as she addressed the man, "So we have a deal?"

The man shacked Maggie´s hand to seal the deal, while Jaune fell in the harsh realization that he had absolutely no saying in his own life.

The man took Jaune and Don to his house, an old shack at a fair distance of the Inn. Just as with the rest of the town´s buildings, this house had seen better days, but that wasn't a concern at the moment. What Don wanted to focus on was how to creatively turn this task into suited training for his student. His first instinct was to teach him balance and increase his physical strength by making him carry all the materials on his own to the roof, but here was the twist, Jaune need to learn how to fluidly move, so Don forbade the use of a ladder. Jaune had to climb the house on his own while carrying equipment and materials. It wasn't practical, but that didn't matter, what mattered was the training of his body and since the costumer was just happy of getting the job done, there was nothing stopping Don from giving this instruction.

Of course, Jaune struggled, but he had a job to do and at the very least, this would keep his mind busy.

* * *

Morning came once more and Jaune was again waken up abruptly. His body extremely sore but the loud voice of his master made his head hurt even more.

Today´s training session was unusual. After their warm up, Don handed one over a long pipe to Jaune.

"Ok, class. On this beautiful morning I´ll take you out of your comfort zone…again" Don said as he swung around his spear. "You, my friend, have the honor of learning first hand, the Cervantes spear combat style! Trademarked!"

Jaune was curious but mostly unamused, he learned to have low expectations of his master whenever he started talking with overconfidence.

Don was getting annoyed at Jaune´s attitude, but this didn't discourage him. He started teaching him the basic stances and movements of spear combat.

Jaune struggled a lot with this weapon, he was more used to the sword and shield style, he had never tried to implement other weapons in his training, further he had ventured was the two-handed mode on his sword and even then, he mainly used it as he would a bat. The spear was more complex to him, it required him to move his entire body and it was hard for him to not get his arms entangled as he tried to mimic Don´s movements. It didn't help that Don´s style was fairly unorthodox. He used the weapon as if it was a Bo staff, with agility and speed, not just focusing on blocks and thrusts. His style was pretty much a dance, a nonsensical one is what Jaune described it as, he didn't find it coherent let alone practical. But as usual, Jaune tried to compare these technics to Pyrrha´s own fighting style and by remembering it, he realized there were similarities. Pyrrha´s fighting style was also fast and agile. Just like a fine dance, she used her weapons with grace and precision and her accuracy at throwing her javelin was unmatched, Jaune knew it firsthand. However, Pyrrha´s spear was much lighter which allowed her to perform the fast strikes and movements Don was trying to teach him. But the pipe he was using and Don´s own spear were larger and heavier. Jaune just couldn't figure it out, and the more he failed at getting the hang of it, the more frustrated he turned.

Trying to do a spin, Jaune ended up hitting his own shoulder hard, it was painful enough to bring him to his knees. Don rushed to his aid, worried for the safety of his student.

"Easy there, lad. Are you ok? Let me see" Don said as he tried to take Jaune´s hand away from the wound to take a look but the pain just made Jaune even angrier and once more he refused Don´s help, slapping his hand away and standing up on his own, much to Don´s shock.

"The sun came up, let´s just get ready for work…" Jaune said as he walked away from his teacher, still holding his pained shoulder. Don watching him with nothing but concern in his heart.

* * *

Back in the Inn, Maggie had a new job for Jaune, it seemed like the neighbor of their previous client saw Jaune repairing his roof and wanted to hire him to paint her house. The task wasn't as heavy as the roof repair but Don kept his word and turned it into training. Don was still worried about Jaune, he still seemed in pain for his earlier injury and he was getting more and more bruises. He decided to make the painting job a leg excises by instructing him to jump in order to reach the highest parts of the house without using a ladder. He still told him to take it easy though, he was concerned for the boy´s health.

Rental job ended in the evening and Jaune was getting ready to get back to the Inn for his night shift when he was stopped by his customer, a young woman who gave him a box of homemade cookies saying it was his tip.

Jaune got nervous, he started waving his hands not wanting to accept the cookies "I…It´s ok, ma´am, I really shouldn't be accepting tips".

The woman just gave him a warm smile, she grabbed one of his hands and placed the box on it "Please, take them. It´s my way of saying thank you. It´s been a while since I last saw my house so beautiful. You have no idea how much I appreciate it".

Jaune was a bit shocked at the response but he couldn't say no to that sweet smile. He accepted the cookies thanking the woman for her kindness and even ate one of them, telling the kind woman how delicious they were

Jaune headed back to the Inn. As he walked, he kept thinking about the woman´s comment. It truly was very important for her to see her old house come to live once more. In such an abandoned place like this town, it is the little things that give you hope, it is those small signs of improvement that tells you that things can and will be better.

Jaune was about to enter the Inn when his attention was caught by a flair in the mud. He picked it up and it turned out to be a wanted poster with a bounty on it. The picture on it was that of a woman with black hair on a pony tail, she had brown eyes but what caught Jaune´s attention the most was her eye patch. The wanted criminal instantly reminded him of Cinder, she had that same sick, plain cruel look on her face, smiling as if the pain she just caused gave nothing but the purest pleasure. He took poster inside and approached the bar, in it, Maggie and Don were sharing a beer while Cronan was cleaning a mug.

"Well, if it isn't our hero for hire. How was your day, sweetie? Maggie said as she drank from her mug.

Jaune greeted them, but quickly showed the poster "Good. Look, I need to ask. I found this outside. You happen to know anything about her?

Everyone took a look at the poster, Don decided to grab it and detail it. Meanwhile, Cronan and Maggie were surprised at the mere sight of the poster. Quickly, Cronan took the poster off of Don´s hands and burned it on a candle "We don't bring this inside the Inn".

Don and Jaune exchanged a confused look, which was followed by Maggie who tried to lay down the local rules to them. "We stopped hanging wanted posters a while ago. It´s…safer, for everyone".

"Who is she?" Jaune demanded to know.

Maggie wasn't sure if she should keep talking but Cronan was a man who went straight to the point. "Jessie the Viper Fang".

Maggie let out a sigh. "She is the leader of the latest gang to rule our town. Her gang claimed our town as their territory 7 months ago. They come from the mountains every now and then to take everything they can. You already met them actually, they are the same guys you fought when you arrived".

Don was outraged, he slammed his mug on the bar before talking. "7 months and they still get away with it?!".

Maggie tried to calm him down, but Cronan responded sharply "They aren't the first nor the last ones. I already told you, old man. Eventually, you get used to it. That´s how it is around here. Deal with it". Cronan left, headed to kitchen to begging making dinner.

"Costumers are about to arrive. Why don't you go get ready?" Maggie said, trying her best to lighten up the mood. But Don couldn't hide his anger and Jaune his worry. Was this going to be their life as well?

For Jaune, just listing to Cronan´s comments convinced him of something he had in his mind for a long, long time. It really didn't matter how hard you try or how good of a person you were. This world was owned by people like her. People like Cinder. And there really wasn't anything you can do about it. Just take the hit…Give up and deal with it…

* * *

Late at night, Dominique kept playing with the embers, trying to distract himself while Jaune just sat there, staring at the flames. Don took a quick glance at him and noticed something that horrified him. Jaune´s eyes had the same emptiness the town folk had. Going with the motions, accepting an apathic life in which he was just content with breathing another day. Don sat closer to Jaune and tried to talk to him.

"So, kid. I've been meaning to ask you. Can you use your Semblance on yourself?" Don asked to a distracted Jaune who didn't even pay attention to the question. Don snapped his fingers to get his attention and Jaune immediately apologized.

"Your Semblance. Can you do that boosting thing on yourself?" Don said, still playing with the embers moving them with a stick. He seemed genuinely curious but his tone sounded as if there was more than he was letting on to.

"Oh, right. I…to be honest, I'm not sure. I think I can, but mostly I've been using it in other people" Jaune claimed as he took a look at his own hands.

Don kept going "I see. Well, is no surprise. They do say that a Semblance is a reflection of your personality. It´s curious really, you can learn a lot about a person not just by seeing their Semblance, but also how they use it. For example, your Semblance shows that in your heart, you value other people´s life more than anything. That is a remarkable trait, my boy. But unfortunately, Jaune, the way you use your Semblance also tells me…some bad things about you" Don said as he suddenly burned Jaune´s arm with his stick.

"AHH! WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU?!" Jaune yelled, grabbing his arm in pain.

Angrily, Dominique continued. "That´s what I ask YOU! For the past few days you have been having this spoiled brat attitude and I'm sick of it! Every day is another whine, about your sword, about how hard things are, but that´s not even what has me worried, kid! You haven't been activating your Aura, have you!? You think I didn't see the blood, the bruises, the limping? You still have that stupid idea in your head that you should die a hero, and now you also want to punish yourself for all that has happened as if it was your fault!".

"It WAS my fault!" Jaune said, "Not just this, everything! Everything I have done to this day has been nothing but failure, after failure, after FAILURE!"

Don slammed his stick into the fire, "You want to know why you don't boost your own aura? Is because while you value the life of others, you don't value yours at all! Kid, your friends saw something in you, otherwise they would have never let you go on this world ending nonsense! I also see that flame in you but none of that matters if you don't see it yourself! You made it into Beacon, you saved Argus, you saved Atlas! I already asked you before and I'll do it again. Do you see a flame in you?!"

"I don't!" Jaune said as soon as Don finished talking. The camp remained in complete silence, not even the crickets dared to break it. Only the sound of the wood burning could be listened for the few seconds that felt like hours.

Jaune stoop up, still holding his arm and looking down at Dominique, "I don't. I don't even know what you are talking about. Made it into Beacon? I cheated my way there. Faked my entrance papers like a true hero. Argus? I didn't do anything, I planned to steal a military ship and failed at that too. My friends, they are the ones that save the people, they are the ones that fight the good fight, they are the true heroes. Me?! Pyrrha died because of me! I was supposed to guard her and failed, then she had to go fight an enemy she could not beat on her own, because of me! And I COULDN'T EVEN TRY TO HELP HER! A flame? Yeah, that's right, a flame that mindlessly burns and destroy everything while others are trying to put out a fire. A failure, that´s who I am. IM DONE!".

Dominique stood up, he looked at Jaune straight in the eyes, his face was expressionless, but the sharpness of his voice and the intensity of his stare cut Jaune deeper than any blade.

"Then I won't waste my time on a failure anymore".

With those words, Don left the campfire. As he walked away to his tent, Jaune started to breath heavily and tears ran from his wide opened eyes.

"You´ll do better if you ask yourself. What took you this far?". Don said as he entered his tent.

After hearing those words, Jaune couldn't endure the echo of his own failure. He sat back down, holding his head as he cried in despair.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you everyone for ready. As always, I appreciate any feedback, both positive and negative.


	5. Until your body can't endure

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The only way to grow stronger is through great effort. There is a moment in everyone's life in which they must ask themselves "why keep moving forward?".

**Chapter V**

**Until Your Body Can´t Endure**

The night was long for Jaune. His mind scrabbled with so many thoughts, none of them were coherent, so he just stayed there, sitting and watching the flames dance and slowly fade away.

He was lost, no path to follow, no reason to keep going. "They'll do better without me" he thought, referring to his friends back home. Ren and Nora could choose to continue or start a life together. He was sure they would be happy staying at Vale. Ruby, Yang, Weiss, Blake and Oscar, he was certain they would just continue on. Keep pushing. The fate of the world was safe in their hands. Ruby. He wished he could let her know that he was staying in this forgotten town. Mostly to not make her wait for him. He didn't want her to waste her time because of him…not anymore. "Ruby…What took me this far?". Dominique´s question resounded in his head. What took him this far? Why keep going after all that happened, after all the times he failed, after everything he had lost. What took him this far? Was it revenge? No, that can't be. Even after he thought Cinder was dead, he didn't have peace. Was it just delusion? Maybe that was it. The stupid fantasy of becoming a hero. Ruby…She would know, wouldn't she? In his times of doubt, she was always there by his side, she always knew what to say…But now? He was alone. Another failure left him like that. Why keep moving forward?

As the campfire faded, Jaune´s eyes shut with exhaustion and he lied down on the ground, falling asleep almost immediately.

The next morning, Jaune was woken up by the sun hitting him in the face. It took him a moment but he soon realized the oddity of the matter. He woke up during the day, no one woke him up for training, and Dominique? he was gone.

Jaune was heartbroken. He was truly alone. Forgotten. It took all of his strength to stand up and get ready for another day of work.

He headed to the Inn. He was running late but he really didn't care that much, so he just walked all the way there, wondering like a lost dog. The bags in his eyes gave away the rough night he had. As he passed the house of the little faunus girl again, he noticed that today no one was there. Maybe it was the time of the day, maybe she was at school…maybe that cough took the best of her…

As he entered the Inn, Jaune´s face showed shame. He was expecting to be yelled at for arriving so late, so he mentally prepared to endure it and decided to just apologize. However, he was caught by surprise at the sight of his master serving breakfast to the costumers.

Jaune was speechless. "He didn't leave" he thought. Things weren't back to normal, but…he didn't leave. As he saw Dominique get to the bar, he approached him.

"I…good morning…" He said. He was nervous and couldn't even see Don in the eyes.

Don addressed him seriously though. "Oh. Good morning" was all he said as he served himself a glass of water.

Maggie approached Jaune. Contrary to what he thought, she wasn't mad at all. Jaune found it curious but he didn't pay much attention to it. Don´s apathy towards him though, was painful even if he didn't want to admit it.

"You finally made it, sweetie. Your next costumer is waiting for you." Maggie said.

"Oh…right. Where should I go?".

A woman walked near them, she was wearing a nurse uniform and stood next to Maggie holding her hands in front of her "Is this the one?" She said.

"That´s right" Maggie told to the nurse. "Jaune, this is Abigale, she works at our local nursery".

Jaune immediately remembered what the old lady Ruth told him about the town´s nursery. The place had been in trouble for months now.

"Sure…" He said.

The nurse thanked him and asked him to follow her. The nursery was quite the distance from the Inn and she offered to walk him there.

As Jaune and the nurse left, Maggie addressed Don who was sitting on a stool drinking his water.

"Are you sure about this? I had another job ready for him. That nursery…is not a pretty sight" Maggie said.

Don finished the water and kept looking at the glass "Trust me. If things are as bad as you said. The kid needs to see it".

* * *

The nursery was on the top of a hill almost outside the town. As Jaune and the nurse climbed the long stare case there, he could see that the place was an old house. It was most likely an old mansion of a rich family that was turned into a small hospital. A dirt road circled around the hill and it seemed to double as a handicap ramp. The building, just like all the ones in the town, was in need of repairs. Ivies grew all over the walls and many windows were broken. Before going in, the nurse handed Jaune a face mask and told him to put it on before putting one on herself.

Inside the nursery, things were worse than he thought. The place was full of people, so many in fact that many were just sitting or lying on the floor. The ceiling was collapsing in some areas, full of muss in others. Some rooms had to be closed off as the roof had heavy filtrations and the rooms were pretty much flooded. Everywhere he looked at, Jaune saw sick people in terrible conditions. Skin diseases, infected wounds, people burning in fever being kept at bay with nothing but small bottles of water that weren't even cold anymore, and the buckets of vomit were so full, the patients had started to puke straight to the floor.

It wasn't just adults. Jaune saw elderly people and children, all fighting for their life in these terrible conditions.

The nurse and Jaune had to walk carefully avoiding to step on the patients sitting on the hallways until they finally reached her office where they could talk with the rest of the staff. The two other nurses where a young man with brown hair and glasses and a young woman with red hair and freckles.

"What happened, here?!" Jaune asked, removing the mask as the door shut behind him, still in shock after what he just witnessed.

"That? That´s pure and unedited tragedy, pal" The male nurse answered sarcastically, as he sat on chair.

"Everyone, this is Jaune. He´ll be helping us out today. Jaune, this are Jasmine and Midori" Abigale said as she introduced the team.

Jaune shook everyone´s hands, but still, what he saw outside, it was horrible just to think about it. Midori kept telling him that, that was just the tip of the iceberg as Jasmine handed Jaune a nurse uniforms and latex gloves. Jaune got dressed behind a curtain Abigale had inside her office. As he got ready, Jaune could still hear perfectly the conversation the nurses were having.

"How are we on the medicine stock?" Abigale asked, but after Midori and Jasmine shared a concerned look, the answer…was nothing short of alarming.

"As of this morning we are out of everything. The last thing we had were some antibiotics, but we had to use them on a patient in critical condition" Jasmine said, holding her hands close to her heart.

"The only thing left is a bit of alcohol and some gauze. Other than that, Jasmine and I have been giving some herbal medicine to some patients but many need stronger remedies" Midori continued.

Jaune finished dressing up, "How did it get this bad?" he asked.

"You are new in town, aren't you? Rookie." Midori asked sarcastically, laying on his chair with his hand behind his head.

Abigale stood up from her desk and opened the blinds on the office´s window. " _Sigh_. We have been struggling like this for months now. Our former boss, Dr. Rowan, he was more of a business man than a doctor. He knew how to do his job but his true talent was trade and commerce. He had many contacts that would constantly deliver medicine and help fund everything around here…at first".

Jaune asked what happened to which Midori answered quickly "Well, turns out the good doctor knew how to make money, just not how to invest it and even worst, how to pay it back".

Abigale continued. "He didn't use the money on the facility, hence its state. He pocketed everything he could and left for Argus as soon as his loaners started looking for him".

Jasmine looked outside the window on the office´s door as she added to the story "We have been keeping this place running ever since, but without Dr. Rowan, his business partners decided to cut our supply. It was a matter of time before we found ourselves unable to keep going".

Jaune once again was hit with the reality he had seen over and over again. The cruelty of people. Monsters like Cinder that just disregarded anyone else for their own gain. The struggle of those few people willing to try to help those in need. And hundreds of innocent people, paying the price of living an honest life.

"How can I help?".

Abigale went back to her desk before answering, "Well, I was hoping you let us use your so called, Miracle Hands? Ruth told me you can cure people with your Semblance".

Jaune started rubbing the back of his head as he answered ashamed, "That's…not how it works. I don't heal people, I'm able to boost their aura, make it stronger than natural, that´s what heals them. I can try to use it but the thing is that most people have their aura locked, without it…".

Jasmine interjected "But, Ms. Ruth...".

Midori interrupted. " _Sigh._ The former bounty hunter? Of course, she has her aura unlocked".

Abigale hid her desperation behind a fake smile. "Well, Jaune. I'm not going to lie, that's rather…disappointing".

That word. Jaune felt it like a knife. It wasn't a word new to him. "I'm so sorry, I'll tell Ms. Magdalene to refund you and….".

"Oh. Hold on" Jasmine said a bit shy. "We could still use his help, and I'm sure some patients must have their aura unlocked. The place is overrun. We need every person we can get".

"He is already dressed up and If it means I don't have to clean up vomit, I say you got your money´s worth, boss" Midori said agreeing with Jasmine.

Abigale wasn't sure at first but she had to agree with her personnel, they weren't in a position to reject anyone´s help. "Alright. Let´s get to work then".

* * *

The team set off to perform their checks on the patients. The halls crammed with people but the nurses diagnosticated and treated everyone with steadfast determination.

Jaune acted as their assistant. Helping them to move equipment, and even patients themselves. Cleaning the floors and getting rid of the vomit buckets while the nurses comforted the people as best as they could. Jaune was impressed at the dedication of the nurses. He helped Abigale immobilize a man´s broken leg with nothing but whatever strong wood sticks she could find and her own belt. He saw how Jasmine stitched the open wound of a farmer who had a deep cut on her arm. He was even surprises at seeing how the sarcastic Midori was actually pretty good at attending little children, calming them down with toys before taking blood samples from them.

The nurses were a team that truly cared about their town. The people living there, the nursery was all that they had and they knew they were counting on them. Some patients they could help easily. Others…it was more complicated.

Jaune was taken to the area where the more critical patients were hospitalized. They had priority on medical treatment, but with their lack of resources, they were barely stable. As he walked by, a patient took Jaune´s hand, he was burning in a fever. Midori quickly passed Jaune a cold bottle of water.

"This is what we have, rookie. If he can't hold it, do it for him". Midori said as he left to continue his round.

Jaune did as told. The poor man felt such a relief as Jaune helped him drink a bit of water and then placed the bottle around his neck. He turned around to see how Midori helped an old lady sit down and gave her some tea, the same herbal medicine they had to rely on for a while now.

The nursery was a nightmare. A place of suffering and of dying hope. All those patients desperately reaching for help, they all knew that their chances of getting it there were extremely low…and still, they all came, seeking for at least a little bit of comfort.

If he was this disturbed by it, Jaune couldn't imagine how much had the nurses been struggling inside…and yet, they were still there. There was nothing they could do. They tried their best to keep this place a float and sadly they weren't able to. Why keep trying? Why were they still doing rounds handing over bottles of water and handling buckets of vomit if they knew, there was nothing they could do? Jaune saw a group of people determine to keep on fighting to save others. He saw a group of people that had been giving their all to save people´s life…and that sadly were now at a dead end. Stuck in a situation in which it didn't matter how hard they tried, there was nothing else they could do. That was a feeling he was far too familiar with. And still, they kept going.

As Jaune and Midori reunited with Jasmine and Abigale, they decided to take another round before preparing the patients for lunch time.

Suddenly, Screams were heard by all the staff. They came from a dispersed woman who came in rushing towards them. It was a person Jaune easily recognized, the mother of the little faunus girl.

"PLEASE! SHE IS NOT BREATHING!".

Everyone immediately rushed, following the woman through the nursery´s clustered hallways. Eventually, they reached the little girl who was lying on the floor with a folded jacket as a pillow. The girl was struggling to breath, her face was turning red and her throat was swollen.

"Jasmin, Midori! Hold her!" Abigale instructed as she took a small flashlight from her pocket.

As the nurses held the girl´s arms and head, Abigale checked the inside of her mouth, "She has a severe throat infection! We might need to perform a tracheostomy. Jaune! Pass me a scalpel!".

Jaune stood there, his eyes wide opened as the little girl fought for her life. In an instant, the memory of her shy smile flashed in front of him. Her waving at him every morning. She was innocent. She was born in a cruel world in which those who fight end up crushed by those who only looked for themselves. Yet…She was still fighting. Abigale was still fighting, Midori was still fighting, Jasmine was still fighting, Ren and Nora were still fighting, Blake, Yang, Weiss, Oscar, Ruby, they were all still fighting. Why? Because there were people that loved them and they loved. There were people that needed them, and they had to at least try. Someone had to.

"We don't have tubes for it!" Midori yelled.

"We have to try!" Abigale yelled back, but her face immediately turned to the girl as soon as she noticed Jaune whose glowing hands were placed over the girl´s neck.

"Kid, it won't work! Her aura is locked!" Midori yelled, but Jaune was focused.

He knew his semblance wouldn't be able to help, unless he did something he saw and felt just once, one of the first things Pyrrha did to support him with her love and kindness. Jaune´s aura covered the girl´s entire body. He struggled, this was something he had never done, but he had to try. The white light suddenly turned bright blue. Jaune had unlocked the girl´s aura and immediately used his semblance on her.

" _GASP!_ " was the sound that came from the girl's mouth. She was breathing heavily, but she was breathing on her own, and as she finally felt relief, she started to cry out of stress and fear.

"It´s ok. You will be fine, I promise". Jaune said as the girl broke down in tears. Soon after the mother did as well, falling to her knees due to the emotional shock.

The other patients gathered around to see this miracle. So many of them that Midori and Jasmine had to snap out of their amazement to tell everyone to give the girl some room to breathe.

"You…How did you…Ruth said you cured rashes but, I didn't expect…" Abigale said, still amazed at what she just saw.

Jaune had a smile, his hands were shaking, but he was feeling something he forgot a while ago, determination. That drive to help others, to do what was right. "She´ll be fine in a few more minutes, afterwards take me to next patient in need of quick attention. But in the meantime, why don't we let her mother see her?".

Abigale nodded with a smile as she stood up to help the mother who rushed to her daughter´s side.

"Poppy!" the woman said, tears of joy on her eyes as she kindly petted her daughter´s head.

"Mommy" The girl said. Her throat healed enough for her to talk again.

The woman turned to Jaune and gave him a hug, "Thank you! Thank you so much!".

The girl smiled kindly "Thank you".

Jaune blushed a little, soon after, he stopped using his semblance on the girl and stood up as Jasmine approached to examinee her throat, not finding signs of the infection anymore.

As the word spread. The nurse team started their treatment dynamic, as Midori and Jasmine rushed to prepare the patients with the highest priority, Abigale would accompany Jaune to them, diagnosticating the illness and instructing Jaune the best area to focus the usage of his Semblance, and as expected, in most cases Jaune had to unlock the patient´s aura before he could treat them, which was particularly taxing to him. The team worked hard all day, managing to stabilize majority of the patients by sunset, only taking small breaks for Jaune to recover his aura. There were still too many patients in need of treatment though, so Midori volunteered to notify Maggie that Jaune would stay until late at night working at the nursery, which of course she was completely in favor of.

After hours and hours of work, finally, every patient had been treated, those who could, went home, while the more severe cases stayed at the nursery for further observation, but thankfully now there were more than enough beds and rooms available for them.

"You did an amazing job today, Jaune", Abigale said, as Jaune finished getting dress to head back to the camp after a long day of work. "If it wasn't for you…I can't imagine how many people we would have lost today. Thank you".

"It was my pleasure". Jaune said, he tried to be humble but he was proud of what he had done. "If you need any help again. Just call, I would love to help out".

As Jaune was leaving the nursery, he was stopped by a shy voice.

"E…Excuse me", It was the little girl hiding behind her mother with her bunny doll in hand.

"Come on, Poppy. Tell the Mister what you wanted to say", the mother encouraged her.

Poppy slowly came out of her hiding spot but now she was covering herself with her bunny. "Wh…What´s your name?".

Jaune was a bit surprised, but he just chuckled, "Jaune, and you are Poppy, right? Nice to meet you. I'm glad you are feeling so much better". Jaune saw how the girl kept shielding herself with her trusty bunny, he then crouched to her level "Is that Pumpkin Pete? I love it! I use to have one of those when I was a kid, it protected me from the monsters".

Poppy put her bunny doll down to see Jaune´s smile better, she looked at the doll and then back at him. "No. Is not Pumpkin Pete anymore. Now is Jaune. After my hero".

Jaune was shocked, "Hero" he thought. This little girl just called him a hero. For a long time Jaune had always dreamed of becoming a true hero, and lately, he had every possible doubt that he could come even close to achieving his dream, but at that moment, in that particular place, he truly felt like one.

"Well, I'm sure he will always be there for you", He had a smile, the gesture really moved him, he stood up as the Mother addressed him.

"I own you an apology. I've seen you many times passing by my house with that old man, and, well if I'm honest…I always distrusted you. Outsiders aren't kind to faunus, even some locals aren't fun of us. So, when I saw you passing by, I always feared you would do something to hurt my Poppy. But you turned out to be here to save her. Thank you". The mother said, her voice had nothing but gratitude.

Poppy and her mother headed back home, while Jaune walked the long road back to his camp, without noticing that that day, a small spark reignited his deeming flame.

* * *

Back at the camp, Jaune started the campfire as usual. His body was exhausted, but his spirit was still strong. As he got the fire going, the first thing he got to see was the old pipe he used to train with Don. Seeing it brought Jaune the harsh memory of his argument with his old master. He sat down for a bit contemplating the pipe illuminated by the fire. He was at a dead end, he knew that and still, he didn't feel as trapped anymore. Jaune asked himself once more "What took you this far?". Initially, Jaune wanted to become a huntsman for the glory, that was the base of his dream, to be loved and praised as a hero, for stories to be told about him like the ones he heard a million times about his ancestors. He wanted it so bad, he was willing to lie and cheat to get there. With time, he came to realize that being a hero was never about the glory, it was never about being loved. It´s about helping others, it´s about standing for those who need you. His dream was the same, but his reason was different. He wanted to be a huntsman, because he wanted to dedicate his life to saving people, and there wasn't anything else he much rather do. His reflecting thoughts brought him to memories of Pyrrha, of how much she didn't have to stand there for him, yet she did it because she believed in him. As he closed his eyes, Ruby´s voice started to resound in his ears, as clear as if she had been standing next to him. "Is not just about you anymore, Jaune".

With his eyes open, Jaune stood up and grabbed the pipe. He took the stance he learned and started to practice. Strike after strike, movement after movement. He once again hit himself with the pipe, but this time, he didn't let this stop him. His aura was up and soon after, so was he. He kept saying to himself, "What took me this far? My friends, my dream. I came this far thanks to them and I'll keep going because there are people who need me. That´s my reason to keep on living, to keep moving forward".

Jaune kept on practicing for hours until late at night. Even if he didn't fully know what he was doing, he still kept going. That was until a voice came out of the shadows.

"Your feet are misplaced again, lad".

Jaune turned around in surprise. "Don…".

Dominique approached the camp. With a smile he took off his cape, folding it and placing it on a log, he then put his hat on top of it and approached Jaune.

"If you stand like this, you are going to fall down. Here, put your right foot like this" He said as he helped Jaune get a better stance. "Now, attack!".

Jaune did as instructed, his strike improving significantly.

"Good. Now start the sequence I taught you. Initial stance. Get ready, and 1,2,3,4. 1,2,3,4" Don kept instructing and Jaune kept complying.

"See, how easy it is?".

"It´s not…But I'm willing to learn". Jaune said with determination.

"Haha. That´s the spirit!".

Jaune looked down in shame, "Don, I'm…I'm so sorry…"

"It´s ok, lad. I was never mad at you. I was afraid. I just didn't want you to give up on this world…or on yourself." Don said as he put a hand on Jaune´s shoulder, reassuring him that their bond was far from broken. "Let's call it a day, shall we? I'm told you had it rough at the nursery".

Jaune took a look at the pipe and after a short while he grabbed on to it. Rising his head, he said as the flames of the campfire reflected in his eyes. "I can do this all night". He took his stance once more and started the sequence again.

Don smiled proudly. "What happened to being a failure?".

"Well. Ruby once told me that I'm not allowed to be a failure. So, I won't be".

Don´s smile got even bigger and prouder of his student. He grabbed his spear and stood next to Jaune, ready for a night of training.

* * *

The next 3 weeks were intense for Jaune and Don. Their routine was simple but strict. Start the morning with combat training, work all day on the town until sunset, work at the Inn until late at night, a sparring match before bed. They continued doing this every single day. They worked and trained until their bodies couldn´t endure and then did it again the next day, their conviction never diminishing. Their determination, always rising.

Don´s combat training covered multiple fields and his teaching methods were always more and more unorthodox. He taught Jaune how to shield fight. It was frustrating for him that Jaune only used his shield for defense, "You have a heavy piece of steel! Slam the bastards with it!" he kept saying, as Jaune used Don´s shield to hit trees.

Their hand to hand combat training covered the basics of fist fighting as well as how to use the environment in your favor. Don focused on teaching Jaune how to disarm an opponent. He wasn't always going to be in a fair fight so he had to be prepared. Don taught Jaune how to deal with both guns and melee weapons. How to damage the opponent´s joints, disarm them and even take their weapons and use them against them. He did this by attacking Jaune multiple times with a dirty plastic knife and his finger pistols. Of course, more often than not Jaune would end up slapping his face with Don´s immobile hand, but it was a work in progress.

Sword training was Jaune´s favorite. They managed to get a training sword courtesy of the local blacksmith and they would spar almost every night. It brought Jaune good memories of his days at Beacon. Don decided to teach Jaune how to fight without a shield so that he would be forced to rely on speed and agility for his defenses. Don´s fighting style was always compared to a dance by Jaune, one that he struggled to understand but as a good dancer himself, he eventually managed to pick it up. Don taught him how to move with agility and flexibility. Even teaching him how to throw the opponent off balance and some dirty tactics like locking the opponent´s weapon arm and knocking them down with a headbutt.

Spear training was the most difficult for Jaune. But as he said, he was determined to learn how to use this weapon and master it. Eventually Jaune came to realize that Don´s agility with the spear was based around letting the weight of the weapon move it down and up with a sort of pendulum effect. Applying your own force in combination with the built momentum to deliver hard and fast strikes. Of course, that was mostly Jaune over analyzing it, in really Don just thought making the spear spin looked cool. Their spear training focused on learning how to fight multiple opponents at once as the weapon gave Jaune both a longer and a wider range depending on how he held it.

Evasion and reflex training were a lot of fun…at least for Don. The kids of the town had actually grown interested in Jaune´s training. They tended to watch in awe as Don and Jaune trained while they waited for the school bus to pick them up. Poppy in particular was always thrill to see her hero in action, she looked forward to it every morning. Don took advantage of this by being a bit of a…bad influence. He made some slingshots and gave them to the kids to fire at Jaune who in turn was tasked to evade them. How many of those shots were aimed at his crotch? Well, saying that it was fewer than half would be a big lie.

The kids weren't the only ones whose smiles had returned. Jaune´s day job became a massive success. The Inn was full of people requesting his services in any field, and of course Don turned every single one of them into training for Jaune. A lot of the jobs were house repairs, as the town really needed it, but with time it started to diversify a lot. Jaune started to do plumbing, aiding at fields, trash pickup, painting houses both in and out. He did delivery services, he assisted the blacksmith, the mechanic, the florist and he even gave some classes at the school. He returned to the nursery once in a while to do some repairs for free and take care of cases they weren't prepared to deal with, which Jaune did with pleasure as he loved working there and he started using it as training for his aura, something he wasn't always that comfortable with back at Beacon.

At night, Jaune and Don dedicated themselves to work at the Inn. Serving dinner and drinks and even celebrating with the costumers. Don became the heart of the place, always cheerful, although he had the tendency of neglecting the job by sitting with the costumers and telling them his stories. Jaune was actually getting pretty good at the bar. He enjoyed learning about drinks, Cronan taught him how to properly serve a beer and when he was in a good mood, he would teach him how to mix cocktails. Jaune even developed a taste for beer, although he still couldn't handle his drink that well.

At times, Maggie would go on stage and sing the most beautiful melodies with Jaune at her side playing the guitar. Who knew something he learned to impress Weiss would come in handy one day? Don often tried to accompany them with his flute and while he was very skilled as a musician, Jaune didn't let him play more than two songs, he was afraid Don would let himself go with his Semblance.

With the houses around the town looking ever prettier. Eventually the town folk started to take care of their homes on their own without even going to ask for Jaune´s aid. There was a different feeling in the air. People started to feel motivated to improve. At first the streets were covered in trash, after Jaune was hired a couple times to clean them suddenly the people started doing it themselves. It was a domino effect, if a house got fixed the neighbor fixed theirs, and so on. Jaune´s conviction to improve might have been contagious, because every store he worked in started to renew itself a day later. Don´s charisma at the Inn even helped the town get new businesses as visitors would see the vacant locals and Don would convince them to invest in the town simply by befriending the foreigners. In a matter of weeks, the town went from an abandoned ghost town to the kind of prosperous village only described in fairy tales. The smiles of the kids had returned, they were now playing around. The people, once apathic and mad, were starting to show initiative, care, kindness and joy. The sick people that roamed the town and that overran the nursery got the help they needed and were now back in full force. The once dying town that people had given up on, was being reborn.

But sadly. This prosperity may had attracted some…undesired attention.

* * *

At a camp hidden in a cave in the mountains near the town, a woman finishes drinking wine straight from the bottle while sitting on her broken old throne. Around 20 people were sitting in her presence, some drunker than others.

"Boss!" A man said as he approached the woman running from outside the cave. He continued, "I think the town got some…".

"Can't you see, I'm drinking?" The woman answered with little regard for what her subject had to say.

"But, boss!" The man tried to say but was shut up by a flying empty bottle of wine that was thrown straight to his face, forcing him to dock quickly in fear.

"You are too loud!. What do you want!?".

"I…the town…".

"What about it? we raided it dry already" The woman said as she sat back down on her throne.

"They…I don't know, they seem to have gotten more cash, like, a lot of it" The man said as he slowly stood up. "I saw them painting and fixing the buildings and even new stores opening".

"Oh really. Wonder what got them so ballsy all of the sudden. Meh, I really don't care. It´s nothing a little visit from a few of you can't fix. Just take some people and remind them their place". The woman said a bit apathic.

"But boss. There is more…I heard; two huntsmen now live there".

The bandits all got alerted at the mention of Huntsmen in their territory, but their boss just put on a massive smile.

One of them, a big man stood up, towering over the scared bandit. "Those cowards wouldn't have dared to call huntsmen. Are you lying to your boss?!" The man said with a deep threatening voice.

"I…I'm not lying, I swear! I didn't see them but everyone talks about them".

The bandits exchanged looks but soon all their eyes were placed on the woman as they heard the crazy laughter of Jessie the Viper Fang. "Hehe…hehe…Hahah...Hahahaha! Finally! Things get interesting around here! I was so bored! I've been meaning to use my new toy on a huntsman, and just like that they come to visit me. How thoughtful of them, don't you think?" Jessie said as she grabbed Crocea Mors and drew it out, admiring the blade. "Rest up, fellows. We are going hunting tomorrow. And I want to get me a Huntsman's head".

* * *

The sun rose and a new morning of training was in progress. Jaune and Don had turned their sword sparring match into a little play for the kids to watch. As they fought, Don would narrate one of his trademarked tales of chivalry much to the amusement of the children.

"And so, the thief king launched his attack" Don said as Jaune struck him three times, parring each of them quickly.

"But the knight errant was too fast for him!" Don continued as he retaliated, but Jaune managed to evade all of his strikes, locking blades at the last one.

"The battle was intense, none of them would back down. But then…" Dominique said but got interrupted by Jaune.

"But then, the thief king, caught the knight off guard!" Jaune said as he backed down and quickly leaped towards Don who swung his sword to slash him, not realizing that Jaune was actually doing a dodge roll, getting behind him. As Don tried to turn around, Jaune made a spin and a low sweep and caused him to fall down. Don tried to get up but Jaune´s training sword was right in his face.

"The thief king had triumphed, but it turns out, he wasn't a thief. He was a friendly huntsman, who just wanted to prove himself against the bravest of the knights errant" Jaune said as he helped Don get up.

They both turned and bowed at their crowd as the children were clapping and cheering.

"That was quite the plot twist, lad" Don said congratulating his apprentice.

"Jaune. Do you think I can be a huntress too?" Poppy said a bit shy as usual. All these days seeing her hero grow were giving her a dream of her own.

"Don't be stupid. Everyone knows Faunus can't be huntsmen, they are the bad guys" A boy said, much to Poppy´s annoyance.

"That´s not true!".

"It´s to".

"It´s not! Jaune!"

Jaune was a bit uncomfortable but of course he had to step in and stand for his biggest fan. "Of course, it´s not. Many faunus are also huntsmen. My friend Blake is a faunus and she is one of the strongest persons I know. She fights for both humans and faunus to live together in peace. And if you have it in you to fight so that other people can live a happy life, then I'm sure you'll be the best huntress, Poppy".

Poppy´s eyes shined as her face was covered with a massive smile.

"Whatever. You can't be a huntress because you are dumb". The boy said right before Poppy tried to bite him, not for reals though, just to scare him a bit and as the boy jumped scared the other kids started laughing.

Jaune chuckled a little before trying to calm down the kids as to not make the poor boy cry. As the school bus arrived, the kids left and Jaune and Don knew it was time for them to head back to the Inn.

* * *

The place was packed with people, the Inn hadn't seen so many customers outside of dinner in years. Don rushed to serve the food but thankfully on that day Jaune didn't have other jobs so he stayed at the Inn helping out. The faces of the town folk, once full of sadness and apathy, were now cheerful. Jaune and Don had made a name for themselves and the customers let them know as they all greeted them and thanked their service, all knowing their names. Don even got a phone number from old lady Ruth, but he had to turn her down, after all, His sweet little Orchid was always going to be Maria.

The day was hard but finally evening came and the Inn slowed down enough for them to catch a break before the madness of dinner time began. Cronan and Don sat at the bar drinking some beer and laughing at each other´s jokes, it was rare to see Cronan laughing, but after he warmed up to someone, he was a big softy and Don certainly earned that.

Maggie asked Jaune to give her a minute.

"What is it, ma´am?".

"Well sweetie, I wanted to congratulate you".

"Congratulate me?", Jaune said a bit confused.

Maggie nodded "When I met you, I'm not going to lie, I thought you were a big dumb screw up. But you grew so fast, kid. You worked so hard and under such bad conditions. I don't even know why you never asked to move in here, I have spare rooms you know?".

Jaune rubbed the back of his head as he answered. "Haha. Well, I thought about it, but I really didn't want to own you even more money".

"Speaking of which", Maggie said as she took a big stack of Lien out of her pocket and handed it to an astonished Jaune. "Congratulations, you paid your debt and had a lot to spare. It should get you enough supplies to get you to Gaviota, if you know how to spend it of course".

"I…I don't know what to say" Jaune couldn't hide his happiness. He had fallen in love with this town but he had a duty. He had found himself stuck in this place but through hard work managed to climb his way back on track.

"You did an amazing job, sweetie. I don't regret having hire you one bit" Maggie said, but as soon as she finished talking the sound of plates and glasses breaking caught their attention.

"Good news! We have fewer dishes to wash!" Don yelled and as soon as he heard that, Jaune handed the money back.

"Haha. Keep it. You earned it, sweetie". Maggie said as she pushed Jaune´s hand back at him with a smile.

Jaune´s smile was full of hope, but the peace was broken when disturbed sounds started to come from outside the Inn.

Everyone rushes to see what was happening. A group of bandits, 5 of them, were harassing a man who was begging for his life.

Don was outraged, he reached for his sword but realized he had left it and his shield on the back of the Inn, he turned to go find his weapons when he noticed something, his apprentice was missing.

"It´s ok buddy. Just give us the cash and tell us where the huntsmen are and we´ll be on our way". The bandit said as he put a knife on the man´s throat holding him by the shirt. The bandit was enjoying seeing this man shake in fear, that was until he was met with a fist to the face.

The bandit fell to the ground, his knife flying away from him, his other 4 friends watched in awe at the sign of their fellow on the floor and Jaune standing in front of them.

"Get out here".

"Y…yeah…Thank you!". The man said as he ran away to safety.

The bandits all drew their weapons, one of them was holding a rifle, another had a pistol and the other two had a machete and an axe. The bandit in the floor stood up, mad at what just happened.

As the two gun men opened fire the shots were met with a shield protecting Jaune. "Not cool, kid. Starting the fun without me". Don said as he handed the shield to Jaune and kept the sword for himself.

The huntsmen charged at their opponents. Jaune ran first to cover Don from the gun shots. The machete wielding bandit tried to get to Jaune, but Don managed to block her strike and retaliate with his own. Jaune reached the pistol wielding bandit, knocking him down with a tackle and shield bashing him on the floor. He quickly turned around to block multiple shots from the rifle shooter.

Jaune´s shield was met with an axe. Two strikes blocked, he took a quick glance behind him and as the axe bandit swung her weapon, He dodge rolled evading the attack and the axe got stuck on a wood beam. Jaune stood up and with an arching blow hit the bandit with the edge of his shield right in the back of her head, knocking her out. Again, as soon as Jaune finished off an opponent, the rifle bandit finished reloading, but he was ready to take on every shot.

Don and the machete bandit engaged in a sword fight. As the bandit kept missing every strike, she got angrier and angrier at Don´s mockery. Suddenly, the bandit that was threatening the town´s man joined Don´s skirmish with knife in hand. It was a 2 versus 1 fight but Don easily danced around the bandits, even managing to make them damage each other. Eventually, through raw rage, the bandits started to get the upper hand. Don rose his view for a moment and saw how Jaune was getting pinned down by the rifle bandit.

"Kid! Ears!" Don yelled as Jaune took a position to cover himself with the shield while also covering his ears. Don used his semblance, causing a light hallucination to all three remaining bandits. He took the change to kick the machete bandit away and disarm and beat the knife one.

Jaune took the opportunity to charge at the rifle bandit who couldn't aim anymore due to the effects of Don´s Semblance. He reached him and used his shield to push the rifle away and followed with a punch to the face.

The machete bandit shook her head, still under the effect of Don´s semblance. Don struck her but she managed to randomly parry his attack. The bandit started seeing multiple Dons and decided to just swing her machete wildly hoping to get a hit. Don was confident but the knife bandit had stood up and was about to stab him in the back. Thankfully, Jaune managed to block the stab. As master and apprentice stood back to back Jaune told Don to switch opponents and with a swift move, they traded sides. Jaune blocked the machete´s strikes and managed to push the blade away with his shield, grabbing the bandit by the shirt and headbutting her. Don in the meantime bashed the knife bandit´s face with the blunt end of his sword and finished him off with a punch to the stomach and a kick.

The 5 bandits lied on the ground defeated and Jaune and Don kept standing. The town folk couldn't believe it. For years they had been living in fear of bandits, but now they saw how two lone men stood victorious in the middle of a circle of unconscious bandits. People started to gather around to witness Jaune and Don´s victory, but something still had them worried.

Don was wondering why the people weren't cheering, but then Jaune noticed how the knife bandit stood up and pulled a flare gun out of his pocket. The sun was setting as the flare´s signal called for reinforcements.

"You are dead. Huntsmen!" The man said.

The small group of 5 bandits was just the tip of the iceberg. A gang of around 50 people rushed to the area signaled by the flare. The town folk ran into hiding, seeing in terror as the gang approached. Jaune was stunned but he kept his shield up, awaiting the beginning of this fight.

As the gang gathered around, some took the knocked down bandits away. The street was full of them but Jaune could see how the crowd started to split to let a person walk through.

"Jessie the Viper Fang" the town folk murmured loudly enough for Jaune and Don to hear who were they fighting against.

"Aw, sweet heart, look what they did to your cute face" Jessie said as she grabbed the cheeks of one of the knocked down bandits. "Who did this to my men!" she yelled.

"Boss! There they are! Those are the huntsmen!".

Jessie took a look up and down to Jaune and Don who were standing in front of the gang. "Those? An old man and a pretty boy? You got to be kidding me. I wanted a fun huntsman kill today! _Sigh._ But I guess you´ll have to do".

Jaune and Don stood firmly. Don´s gaze was focused on Jessie while Jaune´s eyes scouted the area, trying to find a way to tip the scale on their favor.

"They are too many, kid" Don said, a bit tempted to retreat. But Jaune´s face was serious and calculative.

"The flour bags" Jaune said, moving his head pointing to big flour bags stacked on a pile outside a store.

Jessie took Crocea Mors out and pointed the sword at the huntsmen "Go get them fellow! Bring them to me!".

The bandits charged at them, but Jaune and Don quickly grabbed a bag each, they were heavy but they had been training and were able to toss them at the bandits. In response, the bandits slashed or shot them, just as planned. The street was covered with a small cloud of flour that Jaune and Don used to distract the closest bandits and cover themselves from the sharpshooters at the same time. The two then split up, entering the empty stores to attract smaller groups inside and be able to take them out. Jaune fought with his shield, blocking strike after strike and even taking down a couple of bandits, but there were just too many of them, he got hit multiple time and even pinned down to a wall, but he managed to release himself and escape through the back door. Don in the meantime, lacked anyway to protect himself, but he realized that he didn't have allies near him and that the empty store had good acoustic, he used his Semblance and crashed out of a window, leaving the hallucinating gang inside the building.

Jaune was running for his life, the bandits running after him, as he ran behind the stores, he saw through an alleyway and spotted Don fighting in the main street, outnumbered. He ran to his aid, inadvertently taking the horde with him.

Don´s sword was swift, but he was vastly outnumbered and even took several shots from the snipers. Jaune ran as fast as he could. "Don!" he yelled as he threw the shield at him. Don managed to disengage the opponents and grab his shield. Meanwhile, Jaune tossed over a barrel to make his chasers fall down and continued fighting with his fists against any bandit that approached him.

One of the bandits knocked Jaune to the floor and tried to step in his face, but he was able to roll on the ground and evade it, as he stood up, that foot resulted familiar to him, "Hey that´s my boot!". Jaune yelled as he tackled the bandit, but another one slashed him with a machete.

"Kid!" Don yelled, as he tossed his sword to Jaune, who then fought the bandit, disarming and slashing him, but he just got tackled by another one, which made him drop the sword. Jaune fought this bandit with his bare hands and while he was able to land some good punches, he was just too strong for him and things turned worst when more bandits joined the fight.

Don ran to grab his sword and help Jaune, but a wall of bandits stood in his way. Don was forced to switch to his spear to be able to fight multiple bandits at once but even then, it was too much for him.

The bandits Don had used his Semblance on earlier had recovered and joined the fight. Jaune and Don were overwhelmed. Eventually Don´s aura was broken and the bandits took his spear, holding him by the neck with it. Jaune tried to go help him but bandits took him by the arms and made him kneel in submission.

The town folk watched in horror and shame at the sight of the heroes' defeat.

"Bravo! That was a great effort, you two. You did way better than I thought. Don't get me wrong you still got your asses kicked, but it was entertaining, I'll give you that". Jessie said as she clapped, mocking the fallen heroes. "But I suppose it´s time for the main event". Jessie addressed the town folk who were starting to gather more and more. "I WANT YOU ALL TO SEE! SUCKERS! LET THIS BE A REMINDER! THAT YOU ARE WORTHLESS! YOU ALL LIVE FOR MY PLEASURE! NEVER FORGET THAT!". Jessie started to breath heavily after her cruel message. "Now, heroes. You want to know why I came here today? I love killing huntsmen. It's just the best! So, when I heard two brave heroes had come to my backyard well, that was just too good to be true. So, who wants to be the first to meet my blade?".

"Take m…" Don was about to offer himself to protect Jaune´s life, but Jaune was faster and his way of sacrificing himself was more effective.

"That´s my sword!" Jaune said as he stared at Jessie. He knew that would encourage her more, he had dealt with the likes of Cinder before. People like them loved to put down the spirit of those who defied them.

"Oh really? Aww, such a pretty boy, I wish I could keep you. But if you want your sword so bad…" Jessie said as she snapped her fingers ordering her men to bring Jaune closer to her.

"JAUNE!" Don yelled as the bandits held him even tighter.

The men left Jaune kneeling in front of Jessie, as she prepared to swing the blade on the boy, Jaune thought to himself, "So that´s it, I die a hero. That´s what I wanted, wasn't it?".

Jessie was about to strike Jaune down, when a small pebble hit her in the head.

"STOP BULLING JAUNE!".

Jaune eye´s opened in shock.

"POPPY!", Poppy´s mother yelled in horror.

Jaune saw the little girl as she stood in the middle of a bandit gang, with nothing but a stick in hand and tears in her eyes. "POPPY GET OUT OF HERE!".

Jessie turned to Jaune and gave him a little smile, "Hehe, guess you have a white knight, kiddo. Aww you care a lot about her, don't you? Let´s see how much you do". Jessie walked away from Jaune, she placed Crocea Mors on its sheath and proceeded to activate its two-handed mode as she walked slowly toward Poppy.

Poppy´s eyes got filled with terror, the stick falling off her hand.

The town folk watched in horror as the bandit gang leader got ready to murder a small girl in front of them. All these years of suffering and despair, they were finally ending. The town´s spirit was finally back on top, for the first time in years, they had hope. And now…another reminder of their cruel reality.

Jaune´s eyes showed his despair. His memory showed flashes of the last time he was in this exact situation. Haven Academy. How he fought Cinder with no intention of making it out alive. How she beat him and mocked him for his weakness and stupidity. How he lied on the floor, as she threw a spear at Weiss. How she almost lost her life, because of his failure… "Not again…Not again!", he thought.

Jessie brought the blade down on the little girl….and all people saw was a blinding white light.

The shock wave was felt by everyone around, and Jessie was launched back, dropping Crocea Mors in front of her as she flew backwards.

When the light deemed, everyone saw how Jaune was hugging the little girl, shielding her. Jaune didn't use to boost his own aura, not only didn't he fully understand how to do it, he didn't even want to figure it out. He didn't care about his own life, everyone else´s was more important. That was…until he realized that he did have a reason to live. A drive to protect others, to defend his love ones and those that needed him. He didn't want to die protecting one person, he wanted to live protecting them all.

"Thank you. You saved me, in more than one way. You are my hero" Jaune said to the scared Poppy who gave him a hug and ran away to her mother.

"Ah! You BASTARD!". Jessie said.

Jaune stood up and grabbed his sword. "You are not hurting them anymore".

"Kill him!" Jessie yelled at her men, but she was only replied with their own screams.

"Boss! Help us! AHHH!" A bandit screamed in fear as Cronan trampled them away, meat cleavers in hand and letting out a mad pig squeal as he sent out bandits flying in the air.

Behind him, the town folk charge ready to fight for their home.

A shotgun blast hit a beam as it almost hit the head of one of the bandits that was holding Don. "I DON'T MISS TWICE! PUNK!", Maggie yelled as she cocked her shotgun again.

The bandits released Don and ran away. He was ready to join the fight with his trusty spear, even if his aura was broken. That just made the fight more exciting.

The once imposing bandit gang was now overwhelmed by the swarm of town folk, bound on ending the injustice and suffering of their people.

"No…You! This is your fault! I'll have your head!" Jessie yelled at Jaune as she took out two large daggers and charged at him.

Jessie the Viper Fang was an extremely acrobatic fighter. Quick and deadly. And still, Jaune was able to defend from her strikes and evade them as well. His two-handed sword gave him a range advantage, but Jessie´s daggers and movements were swift and precise. Jaune managed to block another strike, but Jessie used it as a faint, she leaped over him and slashed him from behind, Jaune barely had time to recover when he saw her blades quickly bypassing his defenses and hitting him in the neck, thankfully, the blades were not able to touch his skin.

"How do you still have AURA!?".

Jessie was enraged and this just made her attacks wilder. Jaune was starting to get pinned down by her quick strikes, but as Don taught him, if he couldn't find an opening, he had to make one. Jaune leaped to the side evading another strike before charging at Jessie and quickly slashing her as hard as he could, aiming for her left arm. He was able to hit her so hard, he made her drop her dagger. Now that she only fought with one hand, Jaune had more gaps to exploit.

Jessie was getting tired. Her acrobatics were impressive but they took a big toll on her. She took a look around and saw how the town folk were defeating her forces. How? How did these cowards get the guts to defy her? This kid…This kid standing there, he was giving them courage to stand up to her. But it was ok, all she needed to do was kill him and she would have her kingdom back. But Jessie didn't have a chance to end her train of thought when Jaune´s blade slashed her across her belly.

Jessie´s anger kept rising. She attacked Jaune on a frenzy, managing to hit him multiple times, but while she was fighting, a group of town folk started to throw rocks at her. This served as the best distraction Jaune could ask for and he took the chance to do heavy damage to Jessie, slashing her left and right. Jaune´s strikes were strong, the weight of his blade combined with his acquired physical strength made for a formidable combo that had Jessie severely hurt. Even worst for her luck, it wasn't just rocks what the town folk were throwing at her. Some had picked up the bandit´s guns and opened fire on the bandit queen.

Jessie could barely stand. Her aura was about to get broken and this kid still had his. The anger blinded her as she went for a stab with her right hand. Jaune stayed calm, with swiftness he moved his body to evade the stab and quickly he was able to grab Jessie´s wrist, he then hit her in the stomach with the blunt end of his sword and twisted her arm to force her to drop her dagger. He kicked her away and as she stubbled, Jaune slashed her, sending flying towards some barrels and finally breaking her aura.

"It's over…Just surrender." Jaune said, he was clearly exhausted as he was breathing heavily.

Jessie saw how his men had also lost. The town folk had beaten all of them. Her body wasn't responding, she grabbed her wrist in pain and realized her aura was broken but her anger kept her going. She reached and found a gun near her, she thought she was being clever, she quickly grabbed it and intended on unloading on Jaune, but he had already seen her intention. He dropped his sword and with speed, he kicked her face before she could even start to move her arm and aim. With that, Jessie the Viper Fang was defeated and Jaune claimed his first victory.

Jaune was shaking and breathing heavily. He was exhausted and even stubbled. But he did it. He won.

"AHAHAHAH! YOU DID IT, KID!" Don yelled as he hugged his apprentice. "THAT´S MY BOY! ME! I TRAINED HIM! HAHA!".

The town folk cheered. Their town was finally saved. For the first time in years, they had complete faith that there was a bright future for them.

The bandits were tied up and gathered together. Even Jessie who had woken up. She was put front and center for everyone to see her defeat.

"What should we do with them?" someone asked.

Don rubbed his beard "OFF WITH THEIR HEADS!". He said as Cronan stood next to him clinking his meat cleaver.

"WHAT?!" The bandits yelled in fear.

"What? No, Don! Of course we are not going to kill them!" Jaune had to intervene.

"Dawww" Cronan said in disappointment.

Don then tried to cheer his friend. "It´s ok, buddy, you'll have your time".

Maggie approached Jaune, her shotgun on her shoulder and a proud smile on her face "I seem to remember there is a bounty on this scum".

Jaune smiled at her and he proceeded to announce "Then we´ll claim the bounty for the town. I'm sure Abigale and the nursery could use the money".

Maggie smiled proud of him as the town folk cheered for their victory.

* * *

That night, a massive celebration took place at Magdalene´s Inn. The town folk gathered to celebrate having gotten their town back. Abigale, Midori and Jasmine all rushed from the nursery to both help the wounded in the fight as well as congratulating Jaune for his efforts, and when he told them that the bounty´s reward was going to the nursery, Abigale couldn't restrain herself and gave him a tearful hug.

Cronan had to work on double duty, but he did it gladly. This was a special occasion and he had mouths to feed.

Poppy was hailed as a hero. In a town full of grown adults, this little girl was braver than all of them combined. If becoming a huntress was really her new dream, then she was a natural at it. Of course, she was grounded the very next day. Running to pick up a fight with a bandit queen? Not while she lived under her mother´s roof!.

Don as always was the heart of the party, only that this time he didn't have to tell imaginary stories. He had one right there that people were eager to hear.

Jaune went to sit by the bar, he was having a lot fun but he really could use a break for a bit. He couldn't believe it, after all this time, he actually succeeded on his own. He even got his sword and boot back. His attention was caught by a beer mug sliding on the bar on his direction.

"That´s on the house, sweetie" Maggie told Jaune just like she did the day they first met.

Jaune thanked her and as he took a sip, Maggie continued.

"You know, maybe I was wrong." She said, much to Jaune confusion.

"What do you mean?"

Maggie continued, "This town was lost before you two arrived. We could barely find the strength to wake up in the morning, let alone kept going in the day. Having your future stolen is a terrible feeling, not fighting for it is worst. But then came along the two dumbest heroes I've seen, and now, look at us:"

Jaune smiled as he saw the happy faces of the town folk. He saw them sing, he saw them dance. It was so different from what he saw on his first day in town.

"All I did was fix some roofs and paint some houses. They did all the rest, even the bandits they were the ones to beat them", Jaune said, but Maggie shook her head.

"You did more than that. Sweetie, a hero is not only the person who saves people and beats the bad guy. A hero must inspire the people to aim higher, to be and do better. That´s what you did. We saw you struggle and then we saw you stand up. We saw you helping others when we didn't help ourselves. We saw you fight when we hid. That´s what made us rise once more. You gave us back that flame and now, no one else will be able to extinguish it again. So, yeah, maybe I was wrong. Maybe you aren't that bad at this hero thing." Maggie said as she gave Jaune a loving hug.

The party lasted until late at night, but by the next morning, Jaune and Don got ready to continue their journey. The town folk were kind enough to give them some supplies to take on their trip. Jaune made a promise to Poppy to visit her someday and in the meantime, she had to promise that she would protect the town while he was gone. And so, with smiles on their faces, Jaune and Don gave their farewells to the town. They set their sight to reaching a brighter future, to protect all those that needed them and to enjoy the thrills of the adventures that awaited them ahead.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you everyone for reading. It is with pleasure that I present you the end of the first arc of this story. As always, Ill really appreciate any critism both positive and negative that you may want to give.


	6. May the wind blow in your favor

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A cynical life is no life at all. The adventure continues as the knights take to the seas on a quest for treasures, rum and gold! ahoy!

**Chapter VI**

**May the Wind Blow in Your Favor**

"RUN, KID!"

"IM SOOO SORRY!"

"DON'T LET THEM GET AWAY!". Yelled a mob of around 5 people as they chased Jaune and Don across a forest.

The two heroes bravely decided to hide behind a large rock and hoped for their pursuers to miss them.

"What were you thinking!?" Jaune said angrily to his master, his voice lowered as to not give away their hiding spot.

"I told you! I just wanted some chocolate milk from that brown cow!" Don replied.

"First, brown cows don't give chocolate milk! and Second, they were selling milk!

"I wasn't going to pay 6 Lien for a glass of milk, are you kidding me?!". Don said with his arms crossed.

"But you didn't have to burn down their carriage!".

"Hey! That was because that guy was smoking. So, if you think about it, he really brought this on himself".

"He didn't scare the brown cow, which by the way, was clearly a BULL!".

"Well, how was I supposed to know that!?".

"BECAUSE IT HAD A DI…" Jaune yelled in anger forgetting for a moment that they were supposed to hide. Thankfully Don covered his mouth as their pursuers got closer to them.

"I think I heard them!" One of them said, as they ran past the rock, not noticing them hiding behind it.

Jaune and Don sighed in relief, they had managed to barely escape this situation unharmed…Or thats what they thought. As they opened their eyes and looked in front of them, a large angry brown bull stared directly at them, ready to charge.

Jaune and Don sat there shaking in terror and embracing each other. With a faint smile Jaune tried to calm down the beast. "Oh….heeey, buddy. How is it goAHHHHH!".

The bull charged at the two huntsmen, but luckily its horns hit the rock behind them, preventing it from hitting them and giving time for the two of them to run away. Fortunately, their screams caught the attention of the traveling milk ranchers who lasso the bull's horns and shot it with a tranquilizer. The Bull kneeled and soon it calmed down, much to Jaune and Don's relief. But of course, that didn't last long, as the milk ranchers quickly surrounded the two Huntsmen, ready to give them the beating they deserved.

"You two MORORS!" a rancher said as he grabbed Jaune by his hoodie.

"Listen! We can discuss this!".

"Yeah! I'll start. I think your smoking habit is the true source of your problems, so clearly you have no one to blame but yourself".

"YOU ARE NOT HELPING, DON!". Jaune yelled right before the ranchers beat them both.

The beating took a few minutes, those ranchers really had some piled-up frustration that they gladly took out on Jaune and Don's faces. After a while, the ranchers demanded to be paid for the damages, which Jaune reluctantly had to agree on, it was either that or pay a dentist for a new set of teeth. The angry ranchers took the money and left, leaving the brave heroes to lick their wounds.

Jaune stood up in pain, but as always Don kept his cheerful spirit, much to Jaunes annoyance.

"Well, that takes care of that. Nothing like a bit of excitement before supper, don't you think?".

"I hate you".

It's been a month and a half since their journey began and this sort of thing had become part for the course for Jaune. Wake up, brush his teeth, get beaten because of something Don did, go to bed. You would think at some point he would have gotten used to it, but Don always found a new and creative way of getting them in trouble. There wouldn't be a day in which they wouldn't end up getting chased by an angry mob, or angry animal, or angry Grimm, or angry mob, animals and Grimm…that was a fun Wednesday. There was also that one time they were beaten by a monk but in his defense, how would Don know that spring was a sacred place? I mean is not like the sign saying "Sacred Spring of Purity, do not enter" was any indication, and it certainly didn't say you shouldn't go skinny dipping in it.

After weeks of travel, Jaune and Don finally made it to a town, this was the first proper settlement they had seen since their days at Magdalene's Inn. This was a fishing town, one of the most common types of settlements in the Stained Coastline but also one of the poorest. The presence of Sea Grimm made fishing particularly hard, not to mention that the abundance of this sort of towns made competition harsh. The most prolific fishing towns in this region were those that served as hobs for trade and travel, with fishing becoming a part of their economy and not their only source of income. This didn't seem to be the case for this particular town though. However, finishing wasn't the only activity in there, no, this was a hub not for trade, but for something else.

Don walked proudly as usual, a big smile on his face as they approached the town, but of course Jaune was annoyed behind him and that was something he didn't even tried to hide.

"Come on, lad. Look at how beautiful the ocean is! Why are you so grumpy?" Don said as he walked backwards facing his student.

"Im not grum… _Sigh…_ I wanted to use that money for my upgrade, ok? Maggie said we had more than enough to make it to Gaviota and I thought I could use the extra cash. Now I'll be surprised if we can make it another week". Jaune said, trying to calm down a bit.

"Come on, lad. We can always make more. We'll figure something out. Look at it this way, at least we didn't get rob this time… technically speaking of course".

"You are not making me feel better".

Don got closer to Jaune and while pointing to his face continued. "Here is a lesson, squire. A Knight Errant always sees the bright side! Don't see this as a problem. Look at it as a challenge and as an opportunity".

"For what?".

"Adventure of course! The kind that makes you rich in spirit and a bit in the pocket. Nowhere is it said that you can't have fun while making money". Don said.

"I think I had enough of your adventures for a day. Why don't we find a place to eat?" Jaune suggested as the two made it in the town.

The town was built on a downhill cove and from the distance you could clearly see its port and all the ships there. The buildings were old, mostly made of wood with cement foundations and as Jaune and Don got closer to the beach they started seeing people working on their fishing nets. These town folks all seemed hard working, but not that friendly. A few that exchanged looks with Jaune ended up spitting near him. As they explored the town, Jaune saw how two men were talking but as soon as they noticed him, the men covered something under a blanket and stared directly at Jaune, clearly threatening him to back off. Jaune started to feel unwelcome in this town but Don didn't pay much attention to it and once they made it to the beach and the port, Jaune's worries left his mind for a while at the sight of the ships.

The port was full of vessels, none seemed quite new but they still had a charm to them. Sail boats, motor vessels, and of course fishing boats both large and magnificent ones and small and practical ones. Jaune's face had a big smile, the sight of this ships, the evening sky, the waves and the seagulls had him in awe. His amazement was cut short though as soon as he bumped into another man.

"Watch it!" the man said. He was a short middle age man with a blind eye and a scar in it, he had a five o'clock shadow and a smell as nasty as his attitude. His short height didn't make him any less intimidating, specially with those big arms of his.

"I…I'm sorry, I didn't see you and…".

"Didn't see ME?! Because I be short?! Ya scrawny sack of trash!" The man said, clearly annoyed. "We don't like pansy outsiders like ya here, YA HEAR ME!".

"I'M SORRY! I DIDN'T MEAN TO" Jaune tried to say but thankfully he heard Don's voice calling for him in the distance which he took as a chance to leave before things got ugly.

"Yeah! Ya better run!".

Jaune ran towards Don who was waiting for him in front of a tavern.

"What took you so long? Making new friends?".

"No! definitely not…" Jaune started to say, exasperated, but quickly calmed down as a delicious aroma caught his attention and made his mouth start to water. "Wow, what smells so amazing?!". Jaune said.

"Ha, ha! Right?! Lets get in, my boy!". Don said, leading their charge into the tavern.

Jaune and Don got inside the tavern, they immediately got greeted by the amazing smell of fried fish, but of course that was the only thing amazing about this place. The entire tavern was dirty and messy, some wood planks were broken and there were passed out drunks all around. The tavern was full of people eating and drinking and the music was loudly coming out of some speakers. Jaune and Don barely managed to find some sits at the bar and promptly made their order.

"What do you want?!" the bar tender asked, rudely, but Don wasn't faced by it.

"Hello, good sir. We…".

"I said, what do you want?!" he replied, growing a bit pissed off.

Jaune got nervous but his stomach was going crazy with the smell of the fried fish. His hunger took over his mind. "Two of that fish, please!". He said, unintentionally rising his voice with a bit of a demanding tone.

The bar tender saw him with a bit of surprise, and that surprise turned into annoyance. "Ya giving me orders, boy?!".

Jaune realized what he had done and quickly tried to back down. "I..no, I said please…" he said with a nervous smile.

The bar tender took a look at him. He wasn't annoyed at all, he just wanted to see how tough Jaune was and after that answer he couldn't help but let out a laugh. "Haha! I'm just messing with ya, fancy lad. Two orders of fried fish coming up".

The plates they got were as dirty as the floor but the fish was incredible, so Don of course saw it as an absolute win, even after a cockroach came out from under Jaune's plate. The tavern doubled as a small Inn and after weeks of travel, a warm bed was too much of a temptation to pass it out. So, they took a room and left all their gear in it before going back down and enjoy a fun evening at the tavern.

As the night went on and they had drunk their first beer, Jaune started noticing something odd about this place. He kept seeing people coming in the tavern, but the place was crowded already. There was nowhere to sit yet not many were standing either so where were the new costumers going? He saw people coming in, not many went out, so the place should be even more crowded that it was.

Eventually, three men came inside the tavern and out of curiosity, Jaune followed them with his sight. The men didn't get a table, neither did they sit at the bar. They headed straight towards the kitchen's door and Jaune saw how the same bar tender that served them earlier let these men in with no problem. His first assumption was that this were kitchen staff as well, why else would they go inside the kitchen after all? But the longer observed the less sense this started to make. As the minutes went by, Jaune kept seeing people coming in the tavern, but not a single one got to a table or to the bar, they all did the same, headed to the kitchen.

The bar tender brought another round to the huntsmen. "Here is your ale".

"Oh…sir. I wanted to ask. Why is there so many people going in the kitchen?" Jaune asked, clearly intimidated by the bar tender.

The bar tender slammed his hands on their table right in front of Jaune and put his face close to his. "Not of your damned business!", he said as he stared right at Jaune who just sat there nodding quickly in terror.

The bar tender left them and headed back to the kitchen, but not before greeting some new costumers and walking them with him back there.

"Man, what a nice guy. How much you think we should tip him? Cause I'm thinking 20%" Don said with a big smile.

Jaune drank to calm his nerves down, he couldn't stop thinking that there was something off with this town and the tavern in particular didn't give him a good vibe. But the bar tender had him intimidated and he really didn't want to get in any more trouble.

"What is it, lad?" Don asked, all this time he was unaware of his students' discomfort.

"Its just…Look is probably nothing, we better not get involved".

"Not get involved?! Nonsense! Lesson two, my boy. A Knight Errant always gets involved! Specially when no one asked for it! Now talk!" Don said eager to hear what his student had to say. Jaune's expression was giving Don a vibe that his student had seen something and that something reeked of adventure to him!

"I…Ok, but is probably nothing. Have you noticed how people seem to come in here but the place doesn't get more crowded and crowded? They all go inside the kitchen and…Wait" Jaune said but he had to pause when something caught his attention. The two men he saw earlier that day, the ones that hid something under a blanket, they were heading towards the kitchen as well. Jaune pointed them down and Don turned to see them going in just like Jaune was describing.

"Nice catch, squire! There is something fishy in this fishing town in this fish restaurant at this fishy hour!". Don said, he was feeling the exciting chills before a thrilling moment. "Come on! Let's see what we can find back there!".

"Hold on! We can't just break our way in like that!" Jaune said as he pulled his master back on his chair.

"You are right! We have to await the best opportunity to make our move!"

"No! just, let's leave it like that! Ok? I'm sorry I brought it up!" Jaune tried to plead with his mentor, but it was too late, Don's adventure senses were off the charts and nothing was stopping him from getting in that kitchen.

To their surprise, the bar tender came out of the kitchen talking in his scroll. "Yeah, I know, dear. I swear, I bought those for you…Oh come on babe. Oh damnit!" He said as he walked out of the tavern.

"What did I tell you? Opportunity! Let's go!" Don said as he dragged Jaune by his arm and headed to the kitchen.

The door was unguarded, so they had no problem going in. As they made their way through the kitchen, they had to silently move around and hide in different spots to avoid being detected by the kitchen personnel.

Jaune whispered to Don as they both hid behind some potato bags "There is nothing here, let's get out!". But his plead fell in deaf ears when they spotted a cook taking a big trait of food inside what seemed to be an underground cellar.

"Jackpot". Don said, as they waited a few seconds and made their way to the cellar's doors, quickly getting inside.

"This is a terrible idea, Don!". Jaune kept whispering as they walked down the long staircase.

" _Shhh._ Did you hear that?". Don said as they approached a second door. There was music coming out from behind it and what seemed to be a bit of smoke. Nervously, Don and Jaune opened the door and as they did the music got louder and louder.

The sound of accordions, violins, guitars and the laughter of a large crowd of people could be heard all around them. The place was huge. A hidden bar full of people drinking, smoking and gambling. The costumers looked tough and nasty and they were armed to the teeth. Drinks and food flew around the place as the sexy waitresses served their costumers, they didn't take disrespect from them though, Jaune saw how a waitress angrily caved a man's face with her fist after he tried to be a little too touchy, and as 2 of his teeth landed on a table, the costumers did nothing but laugh and celebrate.

"What is going on here?!" Jaune whispered but Don had a big smile on his face.

"Don't you see, lad? WE ARE IN A PIRATES DEN!" Don yelled in excitement, completely blowing their cover and catching the attention of the drunk, angry and dangerous pirates.

The pirates stood up, and the music stopped. Guns were drawn and pointed at Jaune and Don, surrounding them completely.

"Outsiders! Ya came to the wrong place!".

Jaune was shaking in fear as the pirates came closer and closer to them, but Don got close to him and whispered in his ear. "Follow my lead, kid".

Don walked proudly towards the man in front of him, slapping his gun away. "Outsiders?! Do you have any idea of who we are?!".

"Ya seem like a couple of pansy outsiders to me!".

"Pansy!? Who ya calling pansy?! We be the Terrors of the South Coast of Vale!" Don replied as he closed his left eye as if he had an eye patch.

The pirates all got curious and lowered their guns a little as Don stood on top of a stool. "YARR! The name be Captain Bloodstab! And that be my first mate…eh…Salty…Bottoms, Yeah! Say hi, Salty Bottoms!".

"…hey." Jaune said faintly.

Don continued "We be the nightmare of Vale! And we heard you had a damn mighty ale in here".

"Ya don't look like pirates to me". The man said, not sure if he bought the story.

Don started to get a bit nervous, if these pirates caught him in his lie, they were done for. He looked back at Jaune, trying to get him to get in character. Jaune was standing there screaming internally, but as soon as he saw Don's eyes, he realized he was asking his help. He had to do something if they wanted to make it out of there.

Jaune grabbed Pyrrha's scarf from his hip and tied it over his head like a bandana, he then took a mug out from a pirate's hand, chugged it whole and slammed it in the floor. "Aye! Captain! That be a mighty ale!".

The pirate's saw him in shock for a moment and Jaune stood there with an awkward fake smile, but to his relief, the pirates started laughing and as they took their guns away, the music started to play again.

"Nice job! Salty Bottoms!".

"Please, let's just get out of here". Jaune said, but his master had another idea.

"Out? The night is young, first mate! And how many people can say they had drinks with real life pirates?!".

"No! We are not going to..." Jaune was about to object, but he was interrupted when a pirate approached them.

"Oi! Bloodstab! If ya have some coin, why won't you join us at the gambling table?".

"Aye!".

"No, Don!" Jaune said, but Don didn't hear him. The thrills of this night were just starting and nothing was going to stop him now. Jaune resigned to just follow his master, he was too worried the pirates would gauche his eyes out or something.

As they sat down on the gambling table, Jaune tried to bring reason to Don. "Don…Eh, Captain. I don't think we should be gambling!".

"Relax, boy. I told you earlier, didn't I? Nowhere is it said you can't make money while having fun."

"Yeah, but we can't lose what we hav.." Jaune was about to say when a pirate lady loudly threw a bunch of domino pieces on the table.

"The game be domino, mateys! Place ya bets and take ya pieces!".

Jaune got nervous as the pirates and Don started to throw money on the table and picking domino pieces.

"You know what you are doing?".

"What WE are doing, and no, but how hard could it be?" Don said as he tossed some pieces to Jaune.

The game went on as the sound of the accordion became louder. The atmosphere was a mixture of joyful and a bit threatening as the pirates slammed the domino pieces on the table one after the other. It wasn't a part of the game but it seemed like they were competing to see who made the hardest noise when placing the pieces.

"Haha! Ya are a sack of chum, Bloodstab!" A pirate said as he placed his piece, mocking Don for his clear inexperience in the game.

"Oh YEAH?! What do you think about this?!" Don said as he put in another piece, not noticing it didn't match anywhere.

The pirates all laughed, it was easy money and just too hilarious seeing this old man pretending to be taught. Some started to doubt his story once more as Don nervously looked for another piece to place.

"Hahahaha! Ya dumb moron! Why won't ya go back to the rat hole ya came fr…"

"E…xcuse me…" Jaune interrupted nervously. The pirates all turned at him with judging eyes but their expressions all turned to shock when the lad continued.

"I'm out of pieces, so…what should I do now?".

"THE LAD WINS! PAY UP!" The pirate lady yelled, celebrating Jaune's victory much to the other pirate's shock.

"Haha! That's ma boy!" Don said as he hugged Jaune.

"How did you do that, kid? You played before?".

"Hehe, not really, but is not hard, you just have to count the pieces and trick the others to waste theirs" Jaune said, the boy was a natural strategist and this sort of games were particularly easy to him.

"LUCKY SHOT!" One of the pirates said.

"Luck?! A pirate needs no such thing! Rum, Beer, Quest and Mead! Those are the things a pirate need! Come on J…I mean, Salty Bottoms. Show them what ya got!". Don said enthusiastically as the second round of bets were placed.

Drinks and bets came and went and to the pirate's frustration started to rise. Jaune was just too good at the game. Victory after victory Jaune became more and more arrogant and confident, and the beer certainly wasn't helping either.

"Terror of Vale? Ya just seem like a couple of fancy idiots!".

"Ha! Well, let me tell ya a story. Back in Vale we became famous for raiding 10 ports in a night. We came out like a black mist and took everything they had! Their money, their dust, see this scar under my chin? Got it when I stopped a bullet from a Beacon teacher right before putting my sword in his guts!". Don said.

"I don't see no scar".

"Well, ya know the lighting at stuff".

The pirates didn't buy the story that much "Pff, That aint nothing. Vale ports are easy to raid. That's all ya did?".

The beers started to get on Jaune's head and he started to talk without thinking but also with a smug face, "We stole an airship from the Atlas military, right under their noses".

The pirates laughed at him; they didn't believe this kid for a moment. "Yeah right! No one steals from the Atlas military!".

"Infiltrated a crew mate in the Argus base, took the whole crew across the border all the way to Atlas with the missing heiress of the Schnee Dust Company with us!" Jaune said, his smugness growing every second.

One of the pirates spat his drink once he heard this story, some were still doubtful but many started to think these two morons might actually be serious business.

"Wait, if ya kidnapped the Schnee heiress, why did ya take her to At…".

"ANOTHER VICTORY FOR THE BLONDE BOY!"

"OH, SON OF A..".

The pirates grew ever more annoyed at Jaune and Don who had amassed quite the little fortune.

"Haha! Atta Boy! Told ya, there was nothing to worry about! I'm gonna get another drink", Don said as he stood up and left Jaune alone at the table as another round of domino was about to begin.

Don walked all wobbly and dizzy, stumbling on people and even stepping on them. In the shadows of the Pirate's den a man was approached by one of the pirates that had been losing to Jaune all night. The pirate whispered something to the man and pointed at Don who managed to get his drink. He then gave a signal to two other men and they headed towards Don.

"Oh, hey fellows" Don said as the two pirates grabbed him by the arms and carried him to the dark corner where the man was sitting.

As he was sat down on a chair, Don saw an old man with a long grey bear, to his surprise his right arm was a cybernetic prostatic and from one of his fingers a small flame came out which the man used to light up a cigar. "So, Bloodstab, was it?".

"Aye, who wants to know?!" Don said as he grabbed his mug and took a sip.

"They name be Captain Fred the Pentahook. Me crew told me how they lost their coin to ya and ya first mate", the man said. Captain Fred wasn't like the rest of the pirates, he was a very serious and calm man, which just made him more intimidating. He was the kind of person a smart man wouldn't dare to challenge…but Don wasn't that smart, so...

"Ha! Yeah we did! Ya crew is made of suckers!" Don said while laughing.

The captain's bodyguards got annoyed and were about to beat up Don but Captain Fred stopped them and continued. "Yeah, they are a bunch of idiots alright. But here's da thing, buddy. All their coin, be me coin. And if ya steal from them, ya are stealing from me…", he said as he tossed the ash of his cigar in an ash tray.

"Now, listen. I enjoy a good big stake gamble, and I also like things to be fair. So, let's make a bet, from Captain to Captain. If I win, ya give back the money and all the money ya had when you entered me bar."

"Aaand what if I win?".

"Ya keep the money and get to go out of here with your kneecaps intact. So? Deal?".

Don wasn't a smart man but he understood the thread clearly, it was either play or die and the odds were against him. He wasn't going to let that intimidate him though, he was a proud knight errant after all.

"Deal! But I get to choose the game!".

"Sure, what is it going to be?".

Don folded his sleeve and put his right arm on the table "Arm wrestling match! Show me what Ya got!" Don said with confidence, however Captain Fred looked at him and gave a smile.

Unfortunately for Don, he realized too late he had forgotten a small detail when the Captain put his robot arm on the table and grabbed his hand "….Oh….Right".

Back at the domino table, Jaune had just won another match and the pirates were getting more and more pissed off. Jaune however was having the time of his life. "I believe this cash belongs to me, gentlemen, oh yeah!", he said, proud of himself but the pirates didn't like his attitude one bit.

This of course didn't stop a drunk pirate lady from throwing herself on Jaune's side "Hey, Salty Bottoms. What ya doing tonight? Care to invite me a drink?" She said as she playfully moved her finger on Jaune's chest and lip.

Jaune immediately blushed and stood up awkwardly, "I…No…I mean yes…I mean…" He stuttered as he walked backwards trying to escape the pirate lady's affection. As he did, he bumped on a large man and made him drop his drink.

"HEY! YA LITTLE BASTARD!" The man said as he grabbed Jaune by the collar of his hoodie, ready to smash his face with his fist.

"IM SORRY! IT WAS AN ACCIDENT!".

Before Jaune's face was pummeled though, Don went out flying, sliding on the floor until he stopped right at Jaune's feet.

"Kid! Don't freak out, but I may have lost all our money".

"BUT I DON'T FREAK OUT!?".

Captain Fred came out of his private table laughing at the idiocy of this supposed pirates. "Hahahaha! Ya really are a fun pair of idiots!".

The entire crew laughed at their misfortune, but Don wasn't going to give up that easily. "DOUBLE OR NOTHING!".

"You aint got NOTHING ALREADY! HAHAH!".

Don was starting to get mad and he wasn't going to back down, his challenge was thrown and there was no going back. "If ya win! We will join your crew!".

"WHAT?!".

"I don't know! I panicked! I mean... Yeah! We will join your crew!". Don said as he lifted his chest and put his fists on his sides.

The pirates all laughed but the Captain was enjoying the idea the more he thought about it. "Haha, Alright Bloodstab! You win! But now I choose the game! Byron! Let go of the kid".

"Aye…Captain" The pirate said as he let Jaune go.

"Bar tender. Bring the Pegleg Potion. We are getting ourselves a drinking contest". The Captain said as his crew cheered.

Captain Fred's robot arm transformed from a hand to a massive hook that he used to hook and launch a massive table in the middle of the tavern. The tavern' staff quickly placed a bunch of shot glasses, making a skull and bones symbol on the table. Jaune and Don watched with worry while the bar tender brought a barrel and started pouring a strange liquid in the glassed. The so called Pegleg Potion was a brown cocktail that looked a bit like gravy and smelled as bad as it looked.

"Don't worry, lad, I'll get us out of here, I promise".

"You were the one that got us into this!" Jaune said, not pleased at his master's attempt at encouragement.

Don approached the table ready to jump in the challenge, but the Captain had other plans.

"Now, now, hold it right there. I'm being told that yar first mate pissed off mine. I told ya I'm a fair guy. Da kid and my first mate play too".

Jaune was a bit surprised but at this point they had no other way out. He approached the table and stood up next to Don.

"Now here are da rules. Last man standing wins, if da shots are done and there is no winner, whoever drank da most wins! Is that clear?" The captain said to which Jaune and Don nodded in agreement.

Captain Fred's arm transformed once more, this time into a pistol. "Ready! GO!", he shouted as he shot the pistol to the ceiling and quickly turned it back into a hand.

The race began and the pirates were off to a strong start, drinking shot after shot. Don also jumped in, but the taste of the shot was terrible for him, he still tried his best to shallow them quickly. Jaune however took a shot and kept looking at it, not daring to put it in his mouth, the shot looked and smelled too disgustingly and it even had little bits of something solid floating in them.

"Kid what are you doing?!" Don yelled.

The pirates had a big lead, but even them couldn't hide how awful the shots were.

Jaune saw how the pirates were amassing a big pile of empty shots and how much of an effort Don was making, he just couldn't stand there and do nothing, he had to try even if it seemed like they were never going to be able to win. "I…ok…ok…. Here I go!" Jaune said before taking the shot.

His eyes opened widely at the taste of the shot…but it wasn't in disgust "It…it tastes like Pumpkin Pete…" He thought.

As the competition kept going the pirates stopped on their tracks and everyone turned their heads at Jaune as soon as they started to hear…that maniacal laugh.

"Hehe…hehe….HAHAHAHAHAH!" Jaune laughed like a mad man and quickly started taking shots one after the other. Don and the pirates were amazed and a little bit freaked out at the sight of this kid drinking like there was no tomorrow. Some people in the crowd even felt nausea. The band however, saw an opportunity to make things fun, they started playing faster and faster as the boy drank his shots and the pirates tried to catch up.

The first mate was the first one out, he couldn't handle the shots and vomited on a bucket next to him. Now it was a 2v1 and with Jaune's…lets called enthusiastic frenzy, they managed to catch up quickly, but the Captain wasn't giving up.

The crowd cheered and the music kept going faster and faster. Don eventually couldn't handle it anymore. It was now between Jaune and the Captain.

Captain Fred could handle his drink perfectly, he was pirate captain after all. He had done this challenge before and as an experienced drinker he knew he shouldn't taste the shot and just pour it straight to his throat, that was his strategy and even then, he couldn't help but taste it a little…but this kid, he was an animal. Jaune started to take over the Captain's side and started drinking his shots. The Captain quickly tried to catch up.

As they both closed in and the shots were almost done, The Captain made a last effort to outmatch Jaune, but when the last shot remained and they both reached for it, Jaune was faster and managed to snatch it right from the Captain's cold steel hand, drinking it and smashing the glass on the table.

Jaune was breathing heavily he almost vomited and the alcohol made him dizzy and incoherent, but he managed to stay in control.

After a quick look at the piles of glasses, the pirate referee had his verdict, "VICTORY FOR THE TERRORS OF VALE!".

Jaune stumbled, he couldn't handle his drink that well and it was showing.

Don approached him "You did it! How are you feeling, champ?".

"Terri…ble. Please, let's go" Jaune said, while trying to hold his vomit.

"Haha, yeah, I feel awful too. Get up stares, I'll catch you in a bit after I get our prize" Don said to his triumphant and nauseous apprentice.

Jaune did as told and headed up stares, he ended up vomiting in the street outside the tavern before heading to his room.

Don was ready to cash out, but before he did, Captain Fred called him back to his private table.

"Well, well, well. Looks like the boot is in another foot…or something…" Don said.

"Don't get cocky, pal. Your first mate caught me off guard that's all". The Captain said as he drank a glass of water.

"Anyways, I'm just taking my money and..."

"Not so fast" Captain Fred said, much to Don's surprise.

"Ya two beat me fair and square and I respect that. But I can't let ya go with all me crew's money. So, I have another offer for ya. Ya can take back all the money ya came in with, and instead of me crew's money, I'll give ya this…", The captain said as he took a folded piece of paper from his coat. As he unfolded it, Don knew exactly what it was as soon as he laid eyes on it.

"A treasure map!?".

"Aye. It be the map for Captain Plentybelt's treasure!". Captain Fred said which only made Don's eyes wide with excitement.

"Captain Barret Plentybelt was the Wolf of Anima. He raided every port from Argus to Menagerie. I be his last living crewmate and only I know where his treasure is to this day! Or that is, unless ya accept my offer, then I'll give ya the map and a ship. What do ya say?".

Don was shaking, a real treasure map, adventure incarnate! What else could he want? "DEAL!", he said before taking the map and shaking Captain Fred's cold metal hand.

Don took the map and the money they originally came with and left back up stares. His brain woozy after all the booze, but his mind set on the adventure ahead.

Captain Fred saw how the old man walked away with a big dumb smile in his face and after lighting up another cigar told to himself "Haha. Sucker".

* * *

Morning came and Jaune was too comfortable on his bed…That just wasn't going to fly.

"AHOY! YOU FILTHY FLEA BAG!" Don yelled while sounding a bell he had... Let's say borrow.

"AHHHHH!".

"Dress up! First mate! We are going on a quest!". Don said eager to start the day.

"Don, I swear, I will…".

"Yeah, yeah, less nagging and more dressing, we are running late!".

Don threw Jaune his clothes and pushed him to get ready quickly, they needed every bit of sunlight they could get.

Jaune was still hangover and the sun outside was killing him but what bothered him the most his master pushing him around to hurry up.

"Come on! Lad, what are you waiting for?!"

"Hold on!" Jaune said as he scrabbled through his backpack looking for something.

They finally made it to a pier at the town's port. Don stood proudly "Here it is! our ship, me boy. The Mighty Antilope!" he said.

Jaune lifted his face in awe at the sight of a huge and imponent ship.

"WOW! That thing is amazing! Is huge!".

"What? No, not that one. The one down there" Don said as he pointed at a small old white boat with a single small sail.

"For real?…Don?" Jaune said as Don walked down a staircase to the lower level of the pier and their might vessel.

Jaune kept on checking his backpack much to Don's slight annoyance. Don quickly threw his backpack in the boat and took Jaune's away to do the same.

"Hey hold on! I'm looking for the money we made last night! I didn't see it when we were packing".

"Oh, that's because I trade it all". Don said with a big smile in his face.

"YOU DID WHAT?!". Jaune yelled angrily.

"Relax, I got something even better!".

"Whatever it is, it better pays for our food!".

"Oh, it will, and more! By the end of this quest, you and I will be filthy rich, my boy! Because I got us a treasure map!" Don said proudly showing his treasure map to Jaune.

Jaune's mouth hit the floor, "ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!".

"Not one bit! Now get on board, first mate!" Don said as he pushed Jaune in the boat and jumped after him.

With the sail open and anchor lifted. Jaune and Don began their treasure hunting journey, like the true pirates they were pretending to be.

* * *

The sea was wild, the waves only got bigger and bigger and the boat kept on moving in all directions. At the stern Don sat with his map in hand as he controlled the boat while at starboard Jaune kept on vomiting, being hanged over and sea sick was a terrible combo.

"AH, this is the meaning of life! The voyage into the unknown! Doing ok, first mate?".

"No, I'm not, ok!" Jaune said before going back at vomiting. After a short bit, he was strong enough to wash up and sit back down. "Do you even know where we are going?".

"Is all here in the map, my boy! Look! That one over there is Sunflower Island." Don said as he pointed at an island covered in sunlight with a massive rainbow over it. "And that one over there is where we are going, Breakneck Island" He said as he pointed at an island covered under a massive storm.

"Of course, it is".

As they approached Breakneck Island, the already wild sea became even more dangerous. The stormy weather had the sail going wild until eventually it broke. Don handed a paddle to Jaune "Paddle, my boy! Paddle as if your life depended on it!"

"It literally does!".

"That's the spirit!".

The storm grew stronger but they were too far away from any landmass. The only chance they had was make it into Breakneck Island as quickly as they could, but that was still a long and dangerous trek.

Jaune and Don paddled as hard as they could, but things were about to become even worst for the two. At a short distance, Jaune saw something among the stormy waves. Something was moving, something black.

"Don! GRIMM!" Jaune yelled as the black figure quickly rushed towards the boat. Jaune took his paddle and stood up as giant black tentacles came out of the water, some wrapped around the boat but Jaune smashed others with his paddle.

The boat was bound to be sank by the giant waves and the Grimm pulling it down. Jaune and Don dropped their paddles and took their swords to try to free themselves from the vicious Grimm. Cutting the tentacles seemed effective at first, it made the Grimm let go of the boat but soon enough another tentacle showed up and wrapped itself on the boat again. Jaune noticed how after slicing a tentacle it quickly regenerated, so it didn't matter how many times they did it, the Grimm wouldn't just let go of them.

"Jaune! Hold onto something!" Don yelled as he pointed at a massive wave coming right at them. Jaune and Don stowed their swords and quickly grabbed into the boat as hard as they could. As the massive wave towered with them in it, Jaune saw how the tentacles shifted direction and now appeared to come from above the boat, and as a lighting crashed the wave was illuminated and the silhouette of the Kraken showed clearly from inside the wave. The wave broke on top of them, capsizing the boat and throwing Jaune and Don into the ocean.

* * *

The sound of waves on the beach kept coming and going, and the sunlight finally woke Don up. He was lying on the beach, wet and covered in sand, but alive. He stood up and right next to him saw the body of his student.

"Jaune? JAUNE?! OH GODS HE IS DEAD!" Don yelled. He stood up and started walking in circles worried.

"Ok, ok calm down, Dominique!" He took deep breaths and continued "So, Maria, about the kid, is a funny story. No, no, there is nothing funny about this! He went rogue! Ran away in love with a nasty woman with an eye patch and a Grimm for an arm! No, that's too unbelievable, what am I saying?! Ok. Kid? What kid? I don't know who you are talking abo…" Don said but stopped as soon as he heard Jaune coughing.

"Kid! Oh, thank goodness! You are ok!". Don said as he hugged his apprentice.

"No thanks to you!".

"You want to fight, but I'm just glad you are fine!".

Against all odds, they had survived the storm and ended up in an island with their boat capsized on the beach but mostly intact save from the sail. Their backpacks were wet but everything was still in them.

"Where are we anyways?" Jaune asked while Don checked his map trying to see if he could find a clue. To their luck, Don recognized the main mountain of the island in the map and confirmed that they had actually made it to Breakneck Island.

"Haha! Not even a storm could stop us!" Don celebrated as this meant they could continue their treasure quest after all!

Against Jaune's protests, Don walked inside the deep jungle heading in the direction described on the map eager to find the legendary treasure of Captain Plentybelt. Jaune didn't have other option but to follow Don, and so the two of them journeyed deeper and deeper into the island.

The longer they walked the more the terrain became harder to navigate, but Don's map showed some landmarks like a weird rock in the shape of a triangle and some palm trees tied to make an X shape.

Eventually, Don and Jaune found a waterfall in which they made a quick stop to refresh and finally drink some fresh water. According to the map, behind the waterfall there was a hidden cave and after a few minutes of searching, Jaune and Don managed to find the secret resting place of Captain Plentybelt's treasure.

Using a make shift torch, they ventured inside the cave, they walked for a few minutes until finally, they made it to a dead end.

"Wait, where is the treasure?" Jaune asked as the cave was completely empty.

"I don't get it; the map says it should be here" Don said as he tried to read the map with the little light the torch was providing.

"Don, just face it, they tricked you! Let's get out of here and see if we can make back to land today".

"Wait! look! The map says: _Look up to find the truth_ " Don said and as they turned their heads up, they saw text written on the roof of the cave.

" _Congratulations! Ya found the treasure of Captain Plentybelt! But of course, the most valuable treasure of all are the friendships built on your journey!"._

"… _."._

"OH COME ON!" Jaune said in anger.

"Well I think is a very positive message. It makes you think that jewels and gold will never come close to the value of a strong bond of love and…Oh wait there is more".

" _SIKE! GOTCHA! HAHA! Nah, there aint no treasure, suckers! Haha! Oh fine, tell ya what, for your troubles there is a bag with a Silver Belt buckle hanged behind the stalactite marked with an X"._

"Oh, hey!" Don said as he picked up the bag with the Silver Belt buckle. "Jackpot! Looks like we got ourselves a treasure!".

"Yei, now let's get out of here". Jaune said sarcastically.

Sunset came as Jaune and Don walked back to their boat, ready to head back to the main land.

"Why the frond face, lad?".

"I just, I would like a single day, just one day in which we weren't in trouble because of you, ok?!". Jaune said, after a month and half, he had more than enough of Don's shenanigans.

"Troubles?! What are you talking about?!".

"I'm talking about this! Changing our money for a fake treasure map?! Almost getting killed in a storm?! All we had to do was keep going to Gaviota. But no, now were stuck in this island in the middle of nowhere, and for what?! A belt buckle?!" Jaune said, finally letting go of his frustrations.

"First of all, it is a Silver Belt Buckle! Second, what is wrong with a simple and fun detour? And C! We are not stuck in this island, ok? There is the boat right there!". Don said as he pointed at the empty space where the boat was supposed to be.

"Where is the boat?!" Jaune yelled as he moved his head from side to side. "Please tell me we didn't lose it!".

"It's ok, lad! I see it over there!" Don said as he pointed at the distance.

The tide had risen and the waves took the boat with them, as Don pointed at the drifting boat, the waves made it crash against some rocks, breaking it into pieces and making their only means of escape sink into the depths of the ocean.

Don's regular smile slowly faded away as he realized that perhaps the kid was into something after all.

"Wonderful" Jaune said sarcastically as he walked away from the beach back into the woods with Don following behind.

As the huntsmen left in disappointment, the floating remains of their boat drifted in the ocean, and particular large chunk of it was grabbed by a tentacle and dragged to the depths.

* * *

As night came, Jaune sat at the fire place, bitter. Don walked closer with more timber and after putting it on the floor decided to join his apprentice.

"Come on, lad. Quit the long face. If it makes you feel better, I was planning on using the Buckle to pay for that upgrade you want so much. How does that sound?" Don said trying to comfort Jaune.

"I…Don, is not about the buckle, ok? I told you, I'm tired of you getting us in trouble. Can't you see how serious this is? How am I supposed to meet back with Ruby and my friends now?".

"Well, we can always swim our way back to shore, but I didn't pack my lucky yellow swimming suit, haha" Don said as he lied down with his arms behind his head.

"This isn't a game, Don!". Jaune said ever so frustrated.

"Lay down, kid".

"I don't want to! I want you to…".

"Just lay down!" Don said, his voice having a more commanding tone. "I want you to look straight up and clear your mind of any thought".

Jaune reluctantly complied and lied down just as told. When he did, Jaune's eyes were mesmerized at the sight of the stars. Millions of them as clear as if they were at arms reach of him. He had only seen such beautiful skies when he camped with his sisters as a kid and when he traveled with Ren, Nora and Ruby a few months prior and even then, he wasn't able to enjoy them, he was either too distracted by his sisters or in too much pain after…well, after the Fall.

"Magnificent, don't you think? You don't see so many stars back in the main Kingdoms. This is truly a blessed view" Don said, as they both admired the beauty of the night sky.

"Lesson three, my boy. Loosen up a little, life really isn't that serious".

"You are kidding, right? After all we have seen? After all we have been through? You are telling me that life isn't serious when there are people miserable everywhere?".

"Calm down, would you? Of course, life can suck. Of course, there is famine, discrimination, corruption, death, suffering and raisin cookies, thats not what I'm saying. What I'm saying is that life isn't THAT serious. I'll put it this way, lad. You are the main character of your life, which would you prefer? for your life to be a tragic drama or an adventure comedy?".

"I really don't follow".

"For crying out loud, boy, you are wearing a hoodie with a bunny in it, are you really telling me you don't enjoy goofing around? Jaune, it is because life is full of misery that you should stand defiant to it. Laugh, sing, enjoy the small things. You want to bring a better future? Make one in which everyone can smile".

"But you can't be happy all the time, thats not realistic. Faking a smile is not healthy. You have to take life seriously at times".

"True, but you can't be serious all the time either. You aren't living life if you aren't having fun, boy. A cynical life is no life at all. You should always find a moment to enjoy yourself. Find a reason to laugh. Loosen up a little, let your true self be free. And for the love of the gods, stop being so whiny all the time!".

Jaune started to think about the word of his master "But what do you do if you end up in a rough situation because of that?".

"Good and bad things will always happen, lad, but you want to know the great thing about not taking everything too seriously? Whether you succeed or fail, at least you'll have a good story".

Jaune stared at the stars, with a lot of thoughts in his head, and a lot of reflection to make.

"A Knight Errant must have fun while living and fighting. Never let your foes see your tears. Make them tremble at the sight of your smile".

* * *

The next morning, the scourging sun shined over Breakneck island but this didn't dissuade the Shipwrecked huntsmen. Shirtless and shoeless, with only their pants, a hat and a bandana, Don and Jaune got to work, their two missions were clear. Gather food and build a raft for their voyage back to the main land. Jaune decided to use his great sword to chop some palm trees to build the raft, leaving one fallen tree for Don whose idea of food gathering was more fun.

Don decided to take the opportunity to train Jaune a bit and made a lot of wooden spears out of the fallen tree. Once Jaune was done with the wood chopping, Don trained Jaune at throwing spears.

The two huntsmen stood on the rocks and aimed at the fishes in the water. Jaune's accuracy wasn't particularly good, but it was a work in progress. Don however was surprisingly accurate, managing to catch multiple fishes for lunch.

As the day progressed, Don had Jaune practice with stationary targets by making him throw the spears at some coconuts while he cooked their lunch.

Jaune tried for a few hours until eventually he started to get the hang of it, managing to hit a couple of coconuts to his joy. Jaune was starting to enjoy their beach day, he even pushed Don in the water and the two of them started to play around like a grandfather and his grandson, without a single worry in the world.

The day went on and Jaune made his best to build the raft while Don explored the Island searching for something to tie the logs together. He found some vines and luckily some rope and after a while they had finally made the raft that would take them back to civilization.

"And, done! Haha! I can't believe, I did it!" Jaune celebrated, proud of his beautiful yet rustic raft.

"I only doubted you a little, my boy!". Don said.

"Eh…Thank you?".

"I'm just messing with you, lad. You did a great job!" Don complemented the hard work of his student.

"Thanks, well your rope actually helped a lot. You have a bit of it tied to your leg, by the way" Jaune said as he pointed at Don's left leg. However, to both of their surprise…this wasn't a rope.

The tentacle wrapped tightly on Don's leg and pulled him to the water. The Kraken had returned for its prey, and it was hungry.

"AHHHHH!"

"DON!". Jaune yelled, rushing to his master's aid, but soon after, another tentacle wrapped around his legs and pulled him to the water as well.

The Kraken lifted both huntsmen and slammed them a couple times on the sand before dragging them to the water. In the commotion, Jaune managed to pull out his sword and in a moment in which he found himself close enough, he slashed the tentacle holding Don, freeing his master.

Don fell to the water but he was close enough to the shore that he could stand up and run to the sand. Don quickly took one of the wooden spears and threw it at the tentacle holding Jaune, stabbing the creature and making it let go of his apprentice.

Jaune fell to the water, under it, he saw the mandibles of the Kraken, freaking out at the horrific sight of the Grimm. The kraken grabbed Jaune with another tentacle, lifting him out of the water with the intention of slamming him with the surface once more. Jaune however was quick enough to slice the tentacle as he was launched to the sky, freeing himself and falling back in shore.

"Jaune!" Don said as he ran to his apprentice side.

From the shore, Jaune and Don saw how The Kraken's tentacles quickly regenerated again, just like they did when they first fought it in the storm.

Jaune and Don drew their swords and shields and prepared to face the next attack of the creature.

The Kraken launched an attack with its 8 tentacles. Don and Jaune managed to block and evade the tentacles as they tried to hit them and slashed them when they tried to grab them. Their defense wasn't perfect at all. The tentacles moved too erratically and it was hard to predict their movements. Jaune and Don got hit multiple times from all angles and while they slashed the tentacles, they regenerated too fast. Don and Jaune got grabbed multiple times, every time they freed themselves, another tentacle would come and take them again, smashing them on the ground or water multiple times. When the opportunity finally came, Jaune and Don ran away toward the trees and at a fair distance from the water.

Now behind the tree line, Jaune and Don finally got a chance to catch their breath.

"It's too strong!" Don said as he tried to catch his breath.

A tentacle tried to reach for them, making it slightly behind the tree line.

"Seriously?! This far?!" Don yelled.

Jaune however looked at the tentacle which despite making it behind the tree line, it barely did and its reach wasn't long enough to reach them. Hiding behind a tree, Jaune took a look at the beach and saw how the Kraken was actually closer to the beach than it originally was. In order to reach that far, it had to get too close to the land.

"Look! Is almost out! If we get it to come out of the water, we might have a chance!" Jaune said.

"Or, here is an idea! We leave to the other side of the island! It wont follow us if we go in land, so let's go!" Don argued; however, this didn't convince Jaune one bit.

"The raft is right there! If we leave we will have to spend another day building one!...And besides…" Jaune said, before giving a smile to his master "I'm kind of having fun". He said to which Don responded with a big proud smile.

"Haha! Say no more, lad! What's the plan then?" Don said.

Jaune took another look and noticed that while the tentacles were able to regenerate from being chopped off, the one tentacle Don threw a wooden spear to still had it stuck in it.

"Go get the spears! I have an idea".

The Kraken still tried to reach the two humans. The beast was a vicious hunter. Once it set its mind on a target, it would follow it tirelessly. Its attention was suddenly caught by the pain of one of its tentacles being stabbed and at the sight of Jaune coming out from behind the trees.

"Come and get me! You ugly sushi roll!" Jaune yelled as he shook his butt mocking the beast.

The Kraken launched a tentacle to strike Jaune, but he quickly evaded it at the last minute and stabbed it with a wooden spear, pinning it to the floor before running to the right.

From the left side, Don showed up, wooden spears in hand as well. "Come on! I've seen smarter shrimps in a Paella!". Just like last time, the Kraken launched an attack with another tentacle just for it to be pinned to the floor.

Jaune and Don continued their assault, as the tentacles tried to reach them desperately, Jaune and Don ran and jumped to evade the strikes and pin the tentacles down, always staying at a good distance to force the Kraken to extend its reach as far as possible. As they did, the Kraken was slowly being pushed by the waves toward the shore and once all 8 tentacles were pinned down, all it took was a big wave to slam the Kraken in the sand.

"Now!" Jaune yelled, signaling Don that their chance had arrived.

Jaune and Don ran as fast as they could. Jaune activated his great sword and charged towards the beast, however, their window of opportunity didn't last as long as they expected.

A tentacle managed to free itself and immediately wrapped itself around Jaune, lifting him in the air and moving frenetically. The Kraken had enough of games and soon enough moved Jaune towards its mandibles, ready to take a bite off him. Jaune tried desperately to free himself, swinging his sword wildly trying to cut the tentacle. He finally got a lucky slice and the tentacle released him, but it did right on top of the Kraken's opened mandibles.

As his student fell to his doom, Don changed Rocinante to its Spear mode and quickly threw it like a javelin straight at the beast's mandibles. The Kraken screamed in pain, shaking frenetically much to Jaune's fortune. He landed on top of the head of the creature and after realizing how soft it was, took his sword and promptly stabbed the Kraken deeply, he stabbed the beast multiple times before running on top of it dragging his sword and slashing the Kraken open, finally killing it.

As the Kraken banished, Jaune fell to the water, exhausted but alive and victorious.

"HAHA! DID YOU SEE THAT?!" Jaune yelled from the water, raising his fist in celebration.

"Yeah! Wooho! That's what you get!" Don yelled while jumping in joy from the beach.

As Jaune made is out of the water, Don greeted him with big hug and afterwards, Jaune gave his spear back.

"This calls for a celebration, my boy!" Don said as he ran to his backpack and returned quickly with two cold cans of beer.

Jaune took the beer with a smile and as they opened the two cold one, master and apprentice cheered with pride at their accomplishment.

As Jaune and Don chugged the beers thought, something came to Jaune's mind.

"Ah! That's a good one, don't you think, lad?".

Jaune's eyes got wide open and as he slowly moved his head back down, he stared directly at Don.

"Don….Where did you get this?".

"From the Resort. There was a truck unloading them, but don't worry, I'm sure they wont notice two little cans missing".

Jaune's hand started shaking as he slowly but angrily crushed the can in his hand.

"….There is…a Resort…".

"Oh yeah, it's about a 30 minute walk over….there….Oh".

Jaune took his sword and activated his great sword mode. "Run".

Don ran as fast as he could, "LISTEN, KID! WE CAN DISCUSS THIS!".

"YEAH! MY SWORD WILL DISCUSS YOU IN HALF! GET BACK HERE!".

* * *

"And that's how we ended up in that ship, officer". Don said as he and Jaune sat next to each other, handcuffed to chairs and in a police station.

"You are joking, right?" The police officer said, her expression clearly showed how much she saw this two as morons.

"I wish he was, ma'am", Jaune said, ashamed.

"I had you two in for being stowaways in a cruise ship, now I have to add arson, illegal gambling, underage drinking, fishing without a permit, deforestation, robbery and trespassing!" The officer said.

"Soooo, does that mean…." Don replied.

"It means prison, old man".

"I knew it! Mom always said that alcohol turned good boys into criminals! Why didn't I listen?!" Jaune yelled as tears came out of his eyes.

"Let's make a deal! I can give you the kid! I know from a good source he stole an Atlas ship!". Don said.

"I WAS ABSOLVED!".

The police officer face palmed "Would you two idiots shut up for a minute? _Sigh._ I should have you two thrown in a cell for a looong time. But you might just be the luckiest morons in Remnant".

Jaune and Don looked at the police officer with shock and curiosity as she continued, "We have been searching for Fred the Pentahook for over a year now. Now you say that not only you saw him, you know where his hideout is. So, here is my offer. You tell me where this Pirate den is and Ill turn a blind eye on you, just this once".

Jaune and Don shared a look and immediately tried to hug the officer, forgetting they were handcuffed to the chair and hurting their arms.

Now free of charges, Jaune and Don walked free men out of the police station. They were now on the large merchant town of Sevillana, a hub for commerce and tourism famous around the Stained Coastline.

"See, lad? A positive attitude and everything will come out all right!".

"Positive attitude or dumb luck?".

"Same all! Now let's get something to eat! I've heard Sevillana has the most amazing seafood in Anima!". Don said enthusiastically and started running.

"Hey! Wait up!".

"Come on, lad! A huntsman can't save anyone with an empty stomach! Let's go!". Don said as he ran with his apprentice following suit.

Jaune and Don ran across the streets of Sevillana, their spirits high and eager for more adventures, but unbeknown to them, the next challenge on their journey was closer than they thought, as a cloaked shadow emerged from an alleyway, its gaze set on the unsuspecting duo, stalking them through the night.

"Huntsmen…".

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AHOY! Ya putrid flea bags!
> 
> Hope you enjoyed this silly pirate adventure leading up to the next arc of this story. As always I would appreaciate any feed back both positive and negative. Wish you all the best and thank you for reading.


	7. The Witches' Market

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The traveling knights explore a city of merchants and faith, finding themselves with a mystery in hand.

**Chapter VII**

**The Witches' Market**

Silence. Not a single sound in the deep woods of Anima. Nothing but the few early birds just waking up along with the sunrise. The calm before the storm I suppose.

South of Lake Matsu, Ruby stood alone in a forest. The red huntress was stretching. Beside her, her trusty scythe was on top of a rock alongside some ammo.

"Are you ready?" Her master's voice came out of her earpiece.

"Just a second" Ruby responded as she started loading the dust ammunition.

"You are taking too long. Every second counts" Maria replied, scolding her student.

"I know, but don't worry, I'll make it. How is the evacuation going?", Ruby responded, scythe loaded and ready for action.

A few kilometers away, Maria was in a small village, people all around her taking everything they could and fleeing the town for safety. They started late though, there were still too many left and time was about to run out.

"Slow. But there is not much time left. We'll have to start and hope for the best". Maria said as she stood on top of some boxes, overseeing the evacuation attempt on the village.

"Ok, then. You see the target?" Ruby asked.

Maria used the zoom in function on her cybernetic eyes. With them, she managed to see a massive dust cloud quickly approaching the defenseless village.

"Yeah. Almost at the drop point". Maria confirmed.

Ruby placed her folded scythe on her back and prepared herself adopting a sprinting start position. "Ok, I'm ready".

"Hold it". Maria said. "Hold it…." She continued, Ruby getting more and more pumped but keeping her calm mind, her objective was clear, life is a beautiful thing, and it must be protected. "NOW!" Maria yelled and Ruby immediately ran at high speed, leaving a stream of rose petals on her path.

She rushed through the woods, faster and faster and as she did, there were fewer and fewer trees around her. She kept running until finally she made it to a precipice. A wood log placed right on the edge served as a ramp and Ruby, like a rose rocket, launched herself to the void.

From the air, the dust cloud rushing on the green plains below could be seen clearly, as well as the beasts that caused it. A horde of Brazen Horns, massive and highly aggressive bull Grimm. An angry stampede that was rushing straight to the village.

Sniper rifle ready, Ruby fired multiple shots of explosive dust ammo behind her to gain more and more altitude and distance in midair. Once she got right on top of the stampede, she unfolded her scythe and with a spin move placed the end of the barrel straight up to the sky, firing one last shot of explosive dust to launch herself down.

The raging stampede was savage, but the mission of a huntress requires to face the most dangerous beasts head on. It didn't matter the danger, all it mattered was the safety of those who couldn't fence for themselves. Ruby's mind was completely fearless as she plummeted down at high speed. Using her semblance, she covered her entire body on a large cloud of rose petals which grew larger every second.

At the village, Maria kept pushing the villagers to evacuate as fast they could. "LEAVE EVERYTHING BEHIND! JUST TAKE YOUR FAMILY AND GET OUT OF H…" She kept yelling before getting distracted at the sight of a huge red cloud crashing right on top of the stampede. Maria knew exactly what that meant, of course she grew worried for the safety of her student, but she had to trust her.

The Brazen Horn's stampede had a portion of it covered under a mass of rose petals, but the beasts kept rushing. They kept charging out from the cloud and continued their mad rampage towards the village. Steadfast, brutal…and unaware of the blade of a huntress.

Ruby came out of the rose petal cloud riding on top of a Brazen Horn. The petals served to mitigate her fall. Now she was in a prime position to start her work. Ruby wasted no time in slicing Brazen Horns one after the other, quickly jumping from bull's back to bull's back. None could match the speed of the red huntress, but time was of the essence, and if she wanted to save the village, she needed to give it her all.

Ruby kept jumping her way through the raging stampede, slicing and shooting every Grimm on her path. She knew that in order to protect the villagers, she couldn't hold back, but she was training for a reason and it was time to put her new abilities to the test. As she jumped, Ruby started to use the technic Maria had taught her, Silver Flash. With her heart and mind set on the memories of her beloved family and friends, Ruby started blinking and activating her Silver Eyes. The flashes of silver light weren't strong enough to finish every Grimm in sight, but they allowed her to eliminate multiples at once while still staying conscious enough and keep moving.

Slices, shots, reloads, and flashes of blinding light. Ruby kept her assault going as fast as she could. At every second, the rampaging horde of Brazen Horns became smaller and smaller, but they were also getting closer to the village.

The evacuation was advancing, but there were still people behind. Maria kept pushing them to move faster as the stampede drew closer. Her attention was then caught by the sight of a little girl running towards the wheat field, right in front of the stampede's path.

As the horde was about to reach the field, steam started to come out of their bodies. Soon enough, flames came out of their nostrils and some sections of their bodies and the Brazen Horn stampede ignited on fire. The flames scorched everything on their path.

Maria rushed after the little girl; the dust cloud had now turned into black smoke. She ran as fast as she could, but at her old age, she struggled.

Ruby was facing her own difficulties. The ignition of the Grimm stampede made their bodies hotter. She was now forced to jump faster as the Brazen Horns had become too hot for her to stay too long on their backs. The smoke was causing more troubles though. Not only did it make it harder for her to see clearly, it also difficulted her breathing; that combined with the exhaustion of the fight and the rising temperature meant that her body was soon to reach her limits, which in this case would be lethal.

The little girl ran as fast as she could, unaware that the blazing stampede had already reached the wheat field and was heading straight in her direction. She finally reached her destination, a small dog tied to a chain. "Bianca! I'm here!" she said as she started setting the dog free, the smoke cloud approaching her.

Ruby hastily dispatched of as many Brazen Horns as she could, finally dwelling their numbers to single digits, but it was too late, the beasts were about to reach the village.

As the little girl managed to free her beloved pet, the ground started to shake violently. In fear, the little girl held her dog tightly as she fell on her knees, paralyzed in terror. Maria found her and immediately embraced her, her cane unfolded, Maria aimed her gun at the approaching stampede, ready to do one last stand against them.

Ruby had to act quickly; she had already realized the proximity to the village, the smoke clouded her vision but as soon as she caught a glimpse of her master among the wheat, she knew she had to make one last push with everything she had.

7 Brazen Horns left, Ruby used her last shot of explosive dust to propel herself forward, killing another Grimm in the process. Using her semblance, she rushed on the Brazen Horns' backs and managed to launch herself in front of the stampede towards Maria and the little girl. In midair, she then released the empty clip in her rifle and quickly loaded a magazine with gravity dust in it, firing it right at the middle of the stampede. The Gravity dust exploded on impact, attracting all remaining Grimm to a single spot and making them fall and as Ruby landed with a roll on the wheat, she quickly stood up and released a massive blast of her Silver eyes.

As the bright light dissipated, Maria and the little girl saw as the remains of the stampede banishing in ashes and the red cape of the Silver Eyes warrior blew with the wind, victorious.

Maria ran to help Ruby, the blast and the exhaustion caused her to stumble. Before she fell, Maria got a hold of her and helped her stand up.

"It's ok, I got you. I'm here. Are you alright?" She reassured to her apprentice.

"Y…Yeah…Just…Hold on…" Ruby struggled to say, but she managed to get the strength to release the clip on her rifle once more, load a charge of ice dust and fire three shots around them to help mitigate the flames on the wheat field. She then fell down and sat on the floor.

"Easy, easy" Maria said as she tried to help her tired student.

"So…What do you think? Was that...worthy…of the Grimm…Reaper?" Ruby asked, a faint smile on her face as she tried her best not to fall unconscious.

"Hehe. I would have done it blindfolded. But it wasn't half bad. Come on let's get you out of here".

The Grimm threat was over and the village was saved. The villagers rushed to deal with the fire but not before applauding the efforts of their heroes. A father ran frenetically to hug his daughter. "What were you thinking?!" he said as he hugged the little girl who has holding her puppy.

"I'm so sorry, daddy! I had to help Bianca and…I'm sorry!" She kept saying as she cried on her father's arms.

"Thank you! Thank you so much!" He said to Ruby and Maria.

For their heroic kindness, Ruby and Maria were invited to get breakfast at the now saved house of the man and his daughter.

The man couldn't thank them enough but he was ready to make sure they would get the best meal they had ever have. As he headed to the kitchen, the little girl was excited to have visits, specially from the heroes who saved her life.

"Miss Huntress! Would you like to meet my mom?" The girl said.

Ruby found the comment curious but of course she agreed. The girl grabbed Ruby's hand and took her outside the house. The two of them ran over a small hill, for a moment Ruby though that maybe her mother lived in another house. It wasn't until they reached the top of the hill that everything became clear…and a bit familiar for her. On top of the hill and below a lone tree, a tombstone lied there with flowers in front of it and the picture of a woman.

"Hey, mommy. I brought visits! A brave huntress that saved me today!" The girl started saying as she kneeled in front of the grave and talked to her mother.

Ruby was shocked initially, but she had seen this scene before. She also tended to visit the grave of her beloved mother. She spent much of her childhood talking to the kind spirit of Summer Rose.

Ruby got closer and kneeled next to the girl before speaking to the grave. "Hello, ma'am. It's so nice to meet you. You have a really brave daughter. She saved a little puppy all on her own".

"I'm sure she would be mad" The girl said with a sadden tone.

"Hehe. Maybe, but only because she loves you very much. I'm sure she would also be very proud of you". Ruby said.

"You think?..I just wanted to help Bianca. I didn't want to lose her too".

"I know how you feel" Ruby said as she softly touched the girls head. "You know…I never met my mom. But my dad and my uncle always told me stories about her. How brave she was, how kind she was. Every time I feel alone, or doubtful, I remember those stories and…is like she was there hugging me and telling me everything would be alright" Ruby paused to wash the girl's tears away from her cheeks. "Our moms might not be here anymore, but we didn't lose them. As long as we keep their memories alive, no matter how painful it can be, they will always be here for us" She said with a smile as the two shared a hug.

As Ruby and the little girl arrived back at the house, Maria received them with a smile on her face. "Enjoyed your trip?" She asked and only received a smile and a nod from her student.

"That's great, because breakfast is getting cold and you need to recover your strength young lady!" Maria continued. "Silver Flash and a big flash like that all in a rough. Hehe. You must have had some really good memories to do that".

"You know I did. This time I remembered Yang's birthdays. That time dad and uncle Qrow both got me the same present and…." Ruby was saying although she stopped herself as soon as she was about to mention the last one.

"And?".

"Oh…Some other stuff, I don't even remember really, hehe…" Ruby said. Maria didn't buy her attempt at deflecting, but if the girl had her reasons that was not of her business.

"Well I'm glad it was strong enough. It really saved our asses back there. Come on. Let's grab a bite".

As Maria went inside the house, Ruby kept on a smile, although her eyes were a bit sadder. The memory she used was strong and happy…but the implication of it, was also heavy in her heart. Some happy memories can be painful to remember, but the joy they bring, that will always outshine the pain...right?

"The anniversary is coming…".

* * *

"Now this is some good steel you have here, lad. Sharp as a razor, sturdy as a wall. It is a real beauty", the blacksmith said as he admired Crocea Mors. From the blade to the shield itself, the blacksmith was impressed by the craftmanship that took to make such an old weapon so durable it still seemed newly forged.

"You think you can do the upgrade?" Jaune said, before he handed over a small paper with the rough design he had in mind.

"Ha! Can I? you won't find a better blacksmith in the entire Stained Coast Line! What you want requires making the sheath a bit longer, not much though. It would make it slightly heavier but the shield's defense would be magnificent!". The blacksmith said, proud of his own skill as he ensured the quality of his services to an excited Jaune. "You came in early, so I'll say, give me 2 full days, I'll have it ready by then".

"That's perfect! Thank you so much!" Jaune said, a big smile in his face and his eyes shining just imagining his new weapon. Of course, reality always had ways to pull him back to earth.

"Thank you? This ain´t free you know? Haha!" The black smith said jokingly as he wrote the price on a piece of paper and handed it to Jaune.

"Eh…this is…way higher than I thought…" He said, his fantasies crashing just as fast as they came.

"Well, I'll tell you what. I do want to work with this beauty. I'll give you 50% discount if you also add that silver belt buckle" The blacksmith said as he pointed at Don who was of course playing around with some shiny shields on the wall.

"Deal!" Jaune said, much to Don's dismay.

"What?! Wait! Hold on! No deal! NO DEAL!" Don said as he ran to the counter and stood next to his apprentice.

"Kid! You don't understand! Billy and I have a real connection now! We have grown closer in the long 3 days we have been together!" Don said right as he took his silver belt buckle off and started lovingly rubbing it against his cheek.

"What are you talking about?! We were stranded on that island for that stupid buckle! And you said we were going to use it for this anyways!" Jaune angrily replied to his master.

With arms crossed, Don answered, "I don't remember ever saying such thing!", completely lying of course.

"Give. Him. The. Buckle. Don!".

"FINE!...just…give me a second…This is goodbye, old pal…Oh gods, WHY?!" Don said as he handed over his beloved belt buckle and cried with his arm covering his face.

"Is your grampa ok?".

"I don't know at this point" Jaune answered when Don started to blow his nose with his own cape. Clearly the pain of losing Billy was too much to handle.

As Jaune and Don made it out of the blacksmith's shop, he wished good fortune to this couple of…strange adventurers.

"Please take good care of Billy!" Don said as the two of them closed the door behind them.

"I will!... Say, Billy. How would you like a steamy date with a melting furnace?".

* * *

A new day of adventure awaited our heroes as they found themselves in the city of Sevillana, the largest merchant town of the Stained Coast Line. Sevillana is famous for three major things; its exquisite cuisine, the ancient beauty of The Cathedral of Saint Agnes and of course, its legendary flea market.

It was said by many that you could find anything in Sevillana's Market. From Mistralian wine to Vacousian jewls, from Valian clothes to Atlasian tech. The market had it all, the common, the exotic, the regular and even the mystic. If you thought of it, chances were, there was someone at the market willing to get it for you, for the right price of course.

Jaune and Don found themselves in the middle of the busiest area of the market. With a few days to burn, they decided to do a bit of exploration. They managed to save a bit of money and there was no better place to resupply than the market that sold almost anything.

Jaune started checking up their list, mostly food, although more clothes wouldn't hurt. Medicine wasn't a necessity thanks to Jaune's semblance, but it was always good to have just in case. Dust? Neither of them actually used it, but fire dust was useful for making camp fires and they certainly weren't going to have a problem finding it in this place. Merchant towns in The Stained Coast Line were the main hub for commerce and the dust exploitation of Lake Matsu, combined with the import of Atlasian Dust, made the market and the entire city as good as a Dust mine itself.

"Just look at this place! Is marvelous! Is astonishing! Is…LOOK! Free samples!" Don said, right before running straight to a booth of cookies, the smell of freshly baked treats was mesmerizing.

"Hey! Wait up!" Jaune ran after his excited master who already had a mouth full of cookies. "Don't run like that!".

"Relax! Get a cookie!" Don said before shoving a cookie in Jaune's mouth. Jaune of course resisted at first but that was probably the best cookie in the world.

"Haha! What did I tell you? Come on, lad. Let's have some fun!".

"Ok, but we also need to get everything on the lis…Holy crap! Is that?! It is!" Jaune replied right before something got his attention in the booth next to them. "The novelization of the X-Ray and Vav movie! I missed the film, but look! It's here!".

"You were saying?" Don asked with a smug face.

"…Ok, fine, I guess there is no rush" Jaune said while paying for his book with a big smile on his face.

"That's the spirit! Come! I see a stand of grilled corn with my name on it!".

Excited, Master and Apprentice jumped around from stand to stand, amazed by the things they saw. They of course had a bit of self-control and did manage to get some of the things they needed plus some extras. Fantasy novels for Don's collection, and a new pair of gloves for Jaune. He even decided to get some things for his friends; he knew Ren would love some exotic incense, he also got a jar of raspberry yam for Nora and thought of getting a neckless for Ruby. As he checked out the jewels, Jaune noticed with curiosity how Don was going through some handmade dolls in another stand.

"I think Maria is not the type to play with dolls, hehe" Jaune said trying to humor his mentor.

"You'll be surprised! But no, is not for her, but now that you mention it...maybe I should get her something too" Don responded.

"Then who is it for?".

"Oh…well..Oh! this one is perfect!" Don said as he grabbed a small rag doll of a little female knight and immediately paid for it.

Before Jaune could ask again, an old lady got their attention with her loud yelling, "GET YOUR CHARMS! YOUR ANTI CURSE CHARMS!".

Jaune was startled by the old woman yelling on his ear, she noticed this and immediately put her charms on his face.

"Get your charms! They will protect you from those retched witches and their dark curses! Just 3 Lien each!" The woman said getting closer to Jaune's face and plastering her wooden handmade charms on it.

Jaune was really awkward "It's ok, I…".

"Ok?! OK?! Sure, you say that now! Just wait until a witch casts a spell on you and makes you lose that blonde hair of yours!" The old woman replied aggressively.

"Get out of here, before I call the guards! I don't need you scaring my costumers!" the doll merchant said as she tried to get the woman away from her booth.

"Scare them? They should be scared! The witches are gonna come for them! Mark my words!". The woman said before she ran off, much to Jaune's relief.

"Thank you so much".

"Don't mention it. And don't worry, they won't come for you…at least I hope they don't…" The merchant said, her words were kind but a bit grim at the same time.

"Hold on! So, there ARE witches!?" Don said, surprised and eager.

"Well…" The seller said but stopped to let two guards walk pass her booth, Jaune and Don noticed how the guards walking by got a reaction from the doll merchant. "We aren't really supposed to talk about it…"

"We won't tell anyone, what is it?" Jaune asked. To him the idea of witches was worrying, he of course believed in them, the stories he heard as a kid were enough to make his skin crawl, but he still wanted to know about it, especially since he was one of the few people who knew the truth. Magic was more than a fairy tale, it was real, and it was dangerous.

Don on the other hand was less worried and more excited. Real life witches? Adventure in the making! There were two natural enemies for a knight; dragons and witches! And he was not going to let this opportunity pass. "Yes! Tell us, please!".

"I…I really shouldn't. Look, the guards take people to question them if they hear them talking about them and…well, I also don't want the witches to…I'm sorry, thank you for your purchase, please move along". The merchant pleaded, an awkward look on her face told Jaune and Don that clearly, this was a topic she really didn't want to talk about.

Jaune and Don noticed how afraid the woman was, and so they didn't pressure her any more. Their minds were curious though. For the guards to be so focus on witches, and for the citizens to fear them so much. What exactly had they been doing to this city?

The young huntsman grew worrier and more curious by the second. But nothing creeped him out more…than that mischievous grin in his master's face.

" _Sigh._ First Bandits, then Pirates and now…" Jaune started to say before getting interrupted by his mentor.

"We have a mystery in our hands, lad! You feel that? The excitement?! That thrill in your bones?!" The old mentor said, shaking his student's shoulders with eager enthusiasm.

"Ok, OK! CALM DOWN!" Jaune yelled, taking his mentor's hands off of him, trying to make him recover composure. "Don, for once, just listen to me first".

Don's joyful face quickly changed to one of confusion. Just what exactly was his student on to? They had already faced dangerous challenges before, what was so different this time?

Jaune looked around him before lowering his voice and speaking closer to his master's ear. "Remember the story I told you?".

"The time you locked yourself out of your dorm and had to stand in a hallway with nothing but a towel? Sure, why you bring it up?".

"What?! No! Not that! The world ending thing!".

"Oh yeah, the gods and the evil wiiiitch…Oh". Don's eyes got wide open upon the realization of what his apprentice was trying to say. "Wait, so..you think that witch and these witches…".

"I don't know. Maybe. Listen. Salem is not the only witch out there, ok? I know there are at least 4 more and if this has anything to do with the Maidens, we have to be careful". Jaune explained.

Don's excitement got clouded for a moment, he now understood his student's concerns and he would be lying if he didn't have his own, although there was one thing he found curious. "Waiit a second. You aren't saying no to this!" Don remarked his smile coming back big time. "You want to find out just as much as I do!".

Jaune had an awkward smile as he scratched his cheek "Well…I mean, is for a good cause...we might help out and even find a maiden…".

"Aaaaand?".

"It..does sound really cool". Jaune finished while rubbing the back of his head. The tale of a knight facing off against a group of witches? As his master had taught him, that sounded like adventure!

"IM SO PROUD OF YOU!".

"Stop! Let me go!" Jaune yelled while he tried to push his master away who was tearfully trying to hug him.

Jaune managed push away his joyful master, and after a small pause he smiled back at Don, "Heh. We really can't have a normal day, can we?".

"Pff. Normality is for loser!". Don answered right before master and student shared an enthusiastic fist bump. Their next challenge was already here, and neither could wait.

Don and Jaune decided to split up, cover more terrain and do their own research. They planned to meet up by the end of the day and share anything they could find about the case of Sevillana's witches.

* * *

With a mission in mind, Jaune explored the market on his own. He had to keep an eye on the guards and be discreet, he didn't want any trouble and just like the doll merchant, people would just be too cautious to talk about the situation.

He walked over to a lone stand and decided to see what he could find. The merchant was a florist, he seemed kind and not threatening at all, which might have been why Jaune felt comfortable to start with him.

"Oh, good day, sir".

"What can I help you with?" the florist said with a smile on his face.

"I…" Jaune started to say, he stopped for a second to consider his approach. Asking the florist directly might not have been the best idea. If he was just like the doll merchant, he would be afraid of telling him anything. He had to play it smart. Jaune took a quick look at the florist's stand just to find something to start the conversation. "I was looking for some red roses".

"Huh, so a gift for a special someone?".

"A specia...no! I mean…" Jaune said, the question was common but it took him by surprise and made him feel awkward. Truly a master detective move.

"Haha. Well, I'm sure they'll love these ones over here". The florist said before walking to the front of the stand and getting the red roses.

Jaune realized this wasn't going anywhere, he needed to dig in if he wanted some answers. "Actually, it's not for anyone. I just heard that roses are good to pay respects to a departed one. They say they keep…evil hexes away…", A clear lie of course and a really bad one, but it was as best as he could come up with.

The florist got a bit shocked at the mention of hexes, his hand started to shake a little as he kept getting the roses. "I've…never heard of that before. The language of flowers doesn't say anything about it, but I guess you learn something new every day…".

Jaune started to get nervous. "Oh, you know. It's just something people say, hehe…".

"I see. Well, you won't be paying much respects here anyways".

Jaune was a bit surprised by this comment. It wasn't the information he wanted but it was still odd. He decided to ask what the florist meant.

"You aren't from around here, are you? Sevillana has a special law against negative emotions. You know, to keep us safe from the Grimm. It might sound odd but…mourning, is something we try not to do anymore". The florist said while handing a bouquet of roses to Jaune. "Maybe you can take them to the Cathedral if you still want them. The god of light might appreciate them".

This certainly sounded interesting, although he wasn't sure if it had to do with the witches. Jaune realized this wasn't going anywhere and when the guards started to station near the florist's stand, he realized he was out of time. Jaune paid for the flowers and thanked the florist before moving on and continuing his investigation.

As he walked through the market, Jaune started to notice something about the city. Many buildings seemed to be under construction. They were mostly old buildings though, so he immediately assumed they were repair jobs, but to this extend?

There were cranes lifting bricks every few blocks and even entire sections of the market that were closed off to the public. He was thinking about it when his attention was caught by the loud voice of a young woman.

"Sir, please! I just need a hand". A young nun said, she was around her early twenties, had pale white skin and long sky-blue hair that came out of her veil. Her habit was mostly white with some black and gold sections in it.

"Sorry, sister. Delivery costs extra" A merchant responded to the pleading nun.

"I can't pay for that! Please!". The nun kept begging.

"I'm really sorry. The Cathedral is on the other side of the city. I just don't have the time". The merchant said before leaving the scene, abandoning the poor young nun with two big sacks of potatoes.

Seeing the nun in need of help, Jaune couldn't ignore her desperate pleads, so he forgot his quest for answers to lend a hand to her.

"Excuse me" He said to the nun, completely forgetting about the romantic bouquet of flowers he was holding in his hand.

"Ah! I…I'm flattered! But I'm fully dedicated to the lord!". The nun said, blushing and becoming a nervous wreck.

"What? AH! No, no, no! This isn't…I wasn't trying to…". Jaune said, becoming a nervous himself. With a red face he tried to calm down and explained himself. He told the sister how he overheard her conversation with the merchant and offered to help her out.

"Would you do that?! Thank you so much!".

* * *

Dominique had been in the middle of his own investigation. So far, he had learned many things. People get pissed off when you yell at their kids; electric dust is not candy and when you bargain you probably shouldn't end up paying more than the original price. None of which had anything to do with the witches, somehow.

He knew that the merchants themselves were very wary of guards. Pressuring them into talking would be hard specially because no one wanted to risk getting in trouble. But if he found someone that was already in trouble, there could be a chance there, and luckily, a market like this had its fair share of shady things going on.

It didn't take long until he found what he was looking for, an alleyway with a street gambling table with a sleazy dealer.

"Ok, people. See the queen? Where she goes? Could be here, could be there. Let's see" The dealer said while performing his card scam. An unlucky costumer sitting in front of him and surrounded by people picked a card. "Ohhh. Sorry, pal. Guess she's too fast for ya".

Don got an idea and with a determine smile approached the dealer.

"Ok, who's next? You, my lady? The gentleman over there?".

"I'll give it a shot!" Don said. As he walked through the small crowd and sat on the tiny pillow in front of the dealer.

"Sure thing, sir! If you pay the fee".

Don threw a couple lien and the dealer with a smirk shuffled the cards around. Don looked at the cards carefully before he pointed at one and the dealer immediately flipped it. "Ohhh. So sorry, bud. Queen didn't like ya".

"Oh, darn it. You know what? Let's give it another shot". Don said before doubling the bet.

"You're the boss!" The dealer said before shuffling the cards once more.

Don once more kept his eyes opened, closely following the hands of the dealer. His eyes when from left to right quickly and as soon as the dealer stopped, he picked another card.

"Oh! Another miss, old pal", the dealer said, the small crowd started laughing at Don's losing streak, but to their surprise, Don was joining them in the laughter.

"Well, that queen is a crafty one. I do like my ladies like that. Tell you what, another chance, but let's make it interesting".

"What ya have in mind?" The dealer said, a smirk on his face and his arms crossed, clearly interested in a high bet and an easy scam.

"If I lose again, I'll give you all my money and the clothes I'm wearing" Don said, dropping his wallet on the table.

"Alrighty then!".

"But!" Don interrupted, "If I win. I'll get all the money, and you'll tell me everything you know about…the witches".

The crowd fell into a deep silence at the mere mention of the witches. Even shady people like them were terrified of them. The dealer's eyes got wide opened. "I…don't.."

"Yes, you do. But it's ok. I mean I lost twice already, didn't I? let's see if the queen likes me by now".

The dealer swallowed nervously, but after a deep breath he came back to his previous confidence. It was just a crazy old man, easily tricked, there was no way he would win. The dealer calmed down and shook Don's hand to seal the deal, for him, it was just easy money.

As soon as the dealer began to shuffle the cards, Don started to talk. "Let me tell you a story" he said, "My grandfather was in the circus. He was an animal trainer. Every day he would call his dogs with a soft whistle" Don let out a whistle before continuing, "One day, he met a girl, and he wanted to impress her, so he called his dogs" he let out another whistle, "And they all came rushing".

At this point, the dealer kept shuffling the cards, but his vision started to get blurry, and so did the crowd's, everything started to look a bit weird.

Don continued. "The girl at first was mad. This weird guy whistling at her? She did not like that at all. But then she saw all the little puppies rushing and she realized the guy was actually kind of sweet". The dealer hadn't notice how long he had been shuffling, he just started to do it by motion. After a few minutes of hearing nothing but mumbling from Don's mouth, he started to snap out of Don's hallucination, realizing that he hadn't stop shuffling the cards.

Both the dealer and the crowd came back to their senses, disorientated, none of them had realized that quite a lot of time had actually passed. They snapped out of it right as Don finished his story, "So finally, after a few months of dating, my grandpa asked my grandma if she would be his queen…". The dealer shook his head off and with a bit of relief, saw that the three cards were still on the table, but his relief was short lived when Don finished his tale "…And the queen say, yes" and dropped the queen on the table.

The dealer was in shock and immediately looked under his sleeve, much to Don's delight. "Oh, I took her out of there like 5 minutes ago. Now, about the information".

"I don't have to tell you nothing! You cheating bastard!".

"Oh really? Well, if you prefer to talk with the guards, I'll be thrilled to introduce you. Or do you want me to leave you alone with your friends?". Don said with a big smile as he pointed over his shoulder behind him to the angry crowd who didn't appreciate being scammed.

The dealer was in a panic. "Ok, ok! You win! The major has been dealing with the witches for almost 6 months now. They steal things from people, personal things, and use them in rituals to call Grimm to the city! That's why no one wants to talk about them! If you do, they'll send one of their minions after you! That's all I know, I swear!".

"6 months? For that long?".

"The major is a bozo, ok? He comes up with stupid ideas and the Grimm just keep coming". The dealer said.

Don started to think about this information. The major wasn't actually preventing the citizens from talking about the witches, that's why the guards only took people to question. If the major was actively trying to fight the witches, then maybe it was best to contact him directly.

"Wait, where are you going?".

"I got work to do, but don't worry, I'm sure your friends will keep you company". Don said before leaving the dealer with the angry crowd around him.

"So, the queen likes your sleeves, huh?".

"Hehe…NOT IN THE FACE!".

* * *

With a sack of potatoes in each of their backs, Jaune and the sister walked through the city to deliver the goods to the Cathedral of Saint Agnes.

"You sure you don't want me to carry both? Um…" Jaune asked politely.

"Violet. And it's ok, I'm tougher than I look. Mister…". The sister replied with a smile and a sweet little laugh.

"Uh. Jaune".

Violet and Jaune walked together across the city. She was really friendly although a bit awkward at times and quite shy.

As they strolled through the city though, Jaune kept noticing the state of the city. The repair jobs weren't limited to just the market. Many buildings all over the place also were under construction. Curious, he decided to ask directly to Violet although he decided to leave out any mention of witches as to not scare her off.

"Grimm" She answered. "It's been a rough year. I've heard it has been for many places, but here…it's gotten pretty bad" She said.

That was probably an understatement. Jaune had seen firsthand the extend of the Grimm attacks in smaller settlements. From light damage, to half a town decimated, and lately…towns completely over run. However, Sevillana was a small city, it was way larger than the towns he had seen in his travels. For it to suffer so much damage, the Grimm activity had to be out of control.

Construction work wasn't the only thing he saw though. Around the city, Jaune saw guards in almost every corner. He saw many things that he found concerning, like a man who hit his toe and was reprimanded by a guard for yelling in anger. A particular view shocked him when a small child fell and started crying and his mother ran to desperately shut him up, just for a guard to approach her with a serious look. The woman pleaded with the guard who seemed to be writing a ticket of sorts.

Around the town, Jaune saw many posters with what seemed to be political propaganda. They said things like "A happy citizen is a good citizen".

At one point, Jaune and Violet stopped for a quick break before continuing. The hot midday sun was cooking them alive. They left the bags and the flowers in a side and sat on a bench on a park.

Violet handed over a bottle of water to Jaune that she had in a small purse.

"Thank you so much, you saved my life!".

"Hehe. You really are brave, wearing a hoodie under the summer sun" Violet replied with a smile while Jaune desperately drank the water.

"Yeah, bravery. Let's call it that." He said, which Violet found quite funny.

Violet and Jaune started to enjoy each other's company.

While recovering strength, Jaune noticed something curious. A block away from the park, there was a hill with ground that seemed to had been moved around. The brown hill seemed like a new construction site, but what was curious to him was…The city was focused on repairing buildings not making new ones. So, what did they want to build in that empty site? Some sort of defense?

"Jaune?". Violet said, much to Jaune's surprise. He was so focus on his thoughts, he ignored her for a bit.

"I'm so sorry. You were saying?".

"I was asking where you were from". Violet said.

"Oh. Vale. Yeah, I've been traveling the world with my friends, we actually just came back from Atlas".

"Really?! That's sounds exciting! I…wouldn't dare to leave town, my sister would kill me".

"You have a sister?".

"Yeah. My big sister. We both joined the convent when we were kids. She is a bit…bossy, hehe".

"Ha! Yeah, I know what you mean. I have 7 sisters and they can get pretty strict when it comes to protecting the baby of the house":

"Right?! Finally! Someone understa…wait, did you say 7 sisters?!" Violet replied, only to be met with Jaune's awkward laughter.

Their conversation was cut short though when a scream was heard coming from a nearby building.

Jaune's instinct was to immediately run towards the building, but was a bit too slow, Violet had already run to the person's aid.

The person yelling was an old woman. "Gods! Please no! Don't take him!", she said.

Violet entered the building quickly, Jaune followed closely, he wasn't sure about entering a person's house without invitation, but it clearly was an emergency.

The sister and the young hero arrived at the place and found the woman crying beside the body of an old man lying next to her. "Please, please!".

"Ma'am, it's ok, it's ok" Violet said, as she hugged the woman to calm her down.

Jaune remembered his training from his time at Abigale's nursery and tried to check for vitals, but the man wasn't responding. He tried to apply first aid on him, but still no response.

"Come one! Come one!". Jaune's heart started rising, the old man wasn't breathing and he didn't know what happened to him. In a last desperate attempt, he resorted to his semblance, not even knowing if it would work.

Jaune was about to cover the old man with his aura in a last effort, but before he could…Violet grabbed his hands. The two shared a sadden look as Violet shook her head, telling Jaune to stop…It was too late. The old man was dead.

The old woman busted into tears, while Violet placed a cloth napkin on the man's face and said a prayer before consoling the poor widow.

Jaune struggled at first to recover composure. He tried, he really did, but it just wasn't enough. A part of him was blaming himself, but really, he did everything he could.

Half an hour passed, and Jaune was sitting on the stares of the house. He was greeted with a soft touch on his shoulder.

"Hey. You are doing ok?" Violet said.

"Better than her" Jaune replied, his sad voice couldn't be hidden. "I guess it's time for him to rest".

"…I wish it was that simple". Violet answered. Her tone was somber.

Jaune was surprised by her comment, but before he could ask, two guards approached the house.

"We are here for the body".

Violet walked up to them with an upset look. "Let the woman grieve in peace".

"You know we can't do that, sister" A guard replied before stepping in the house. A few minutes later, the guards came out of the house with the body of the old man. The widow was heartbroken, but she fought to contain her tears in the presence of the guards.

"Where are they taking him?" Jaune asked, "The graveyard?".

"No…We, don't have a graveyard anymore" Violet responded. "They'll cremate him…and just throw away the ashes to the trash themselves…That's the major's law".

Jaune looked at Violet in shock before turning again at the guards, who put the body on a truck before driving away.

"The major's law?".

* * *

Downtown at Sevillana. A small crowd gathered around a group of guards. The major himself, a short fat man with a big black mustache, had just finished a speech, some uplifting words for his beloved supporters, although the crowd also included many who despised him.

As reporters flooded the area and crashed into the security ring. The major tried to move towards his car without answering any of the press' questions.

"Sir, Sevillana's gazette. What do you say to accusations of inefficient measures to combat the Grimm?".

"No comments". The major said.

"Mayor. Cornsilk! NRT news! What about the low budged for the reconstruction efforts?".

"N…no comments" he repeated.

" And the accusations of your romantic affair?!".

"What?! No, no comments!". He said, awkwardly. The major was a man of low composure. He would constantly act proud but the moment someone threw him a curve ball, he became a nervous mess. Imagine his surprises though when a phrenetic voice asked him a question everyone was afraid to ask.

"WHAT ABOUT THE WITCHES?!".

The major's eyes got wide opened and the crowd was startled. The guards quickly rushed to apprehend the man responsible.

"Let me go! Freedom of speech! Make love not war and all that!" Don yelled while jumping around trying to free himself from the guards.

"Shut your mouth, old man!".

"Old man?! I'm a huntsman! I've eaten boarbatusks bigger than you with eggs and beans!", he kept yelling.

The major was already curious, but the moment he heard Don mention his title, he ran to him with a relieved smile. "Wait! Did you just say you are a huntsman?!".

Don was surprised but he knew when an opportunity presented itself. He released his arms from the guard's grip and with a smug and proud face approached the major.

"That's right! Dominique Cervantes, huntsman extraordinaire! At your service". He said, taking off his hat and bowing before the major, much to his delight.

"Back off, pal!" A guard yelled, "Sir, this man could be lying! Show proof that you are a huntsman!".

"WHAT?! How dare you! Who else but a huntsman could do this?!" Don said before he started swigging his sword all over the place, showing off his abilities, his dexterity, his amazing skill!...and cutting off a bit of his own beard in the process. "Ah! My style!".

The crowd and the guards weren't impressed in the slightest, the guards were even ready to arrest the old man. That was until they heard the applauding major cheering in excitement.

"Yes! Yes! Oh, we sent bounties to Haven months ago! Took them long enough to send a group of you our way!". The major cheerfully said and he shook Don's hand to greet him. "Major Cornelius Cornsilk. Welcome to Sevillana, Sir. Come, come! We have so much to discuss!".

The major wasted no time in inviting Don to ride on his car with him. He told his chauffeur to drive around town, mostly to bust about his achievements to his guest. He served Don a glass of wine and started their conversation.

"You are going to love what we have done here. In less than a year, my administration has achieved the impossible!" The major said before taking a sip of wine, "Crime rates are in an all-time low, the economy is excellent and look! They even made a statue in my honor!" The major continued, to his shame though the statue he was pointing at had a bucket on its head and a caricature of his face wearing makeup.

"That's…flattering?".

"Well, not everyone is easily acceptant of change, you know what I mean?" The major replied, trying to recover his pride.

"Right. So anyways. Let's talk business. I'm here to lend you a hand with your witch problem". Don said.

"Of course. Those despicable witches" the major replied, his cheerful voice became a bit hostile, as if he was ready to spit on the face of the witches themselves.

"I understand they have been sending Grimm to the city".

"Yes, exactly. It all began about a year ago. Before my election, Grimm attacks started to become more and more frequent, we didn't know why but I made it my mission to solve that problem. Keep the people safe, you know? Like you guys do", The major said. He took another sip of wine and continued; "I promised the people that we would do everything in our power to stop the Grimm attacks, and 8 months ago when I was elected, we immediately started working on our social projects".

"Social projects?".

"Yes. Let me ask you, what attracts Grimm?" the Major said.

"Negative emotions".

"Exactly! Take the negative emotions away, and the Grimm won't come". He added.

"But…how do you take emotions away?" Don asked, weirded out by this claim.

"THAT, is where our social projects come in. It wasn't easy, I'll tell you that much. But law after law we started to shape our community into a more…positive one. And for a while that was showing results…That was, until the witches came".

Don wasn't sure how he felt about this. He was a man of a positive attitude, but laws against negativity? That just sounded too extreme for his comfort. Nevertheless, the major was finally getting to the part he was asking about.

"It was a few months after my election. Reports started coming in about these cloaked shadows all around the city. They only appeared at night and were entering people's houses. We though they were thieves, and in a certain way they were, but they didn't steal money".

"They stole personal items", Don added.

"Yes! Wow, you are better informed than I thought. Anyways, guards started to investigate the matter, they found out that some people managed to see the witches. They were all women wearing black and escaped as soon as they appeared. We were obviously concerned but we thought we just had a crime syndicate in our hands, until…the Grimm grew stronger".

Don looked outside his window and saw some buildings under heavy repairs. The farther they rode, the more damaged the buildings were, some even had to be demolished.

"Suddenly, our social projects weren't enough. We had to double down on them, become stricter. We realized we were getting a Grimm attack the day after a new report of the witches came in. It wasn't hard to connect the dots".

"This has been going on for a while. How many people have…?" Don asked, and the major wasted no time in answering.

"Casualties are low, majority of the damage has been to infrastructure. But, one life is too many. Thankfully our first responders are well trained, if it wasn't for them, the death toll would be way higher". The major said, a bit of sorrow in his voice. He served another glass of wine for Don and one more for himself.

"The witches must be stopped. At any cost" the major declared before asking Don, "Would you help us?".

Don now understood the stakes on the matter. Lives were in danger and it was the duty of a hero to stand and do something about it.

"Of course!" He proclaimed and with a cheerful smile, Don and the Major clanked their glasses, settling down their deal of cooperation.

* * *

3 hours had passed and Jaune was waiting outside the old woman's house with the two potato sacks on the side. His mind was still scrambling. It wasn't the first time someone had died right in front of his eyes, but that didn't make the experience any less painful. Death; is probably the most natural and terrifying part of life. He was no stranger to these feelings; regret, sorrow, grieve, he had first-hand experience with them…and still, it was an emptiness that ate him from inside out.

Violet came out of the house, ready to continue their way. She approached Jaune with a regretful smile on her face. "Her family is up stares. She will be fine".

"I'm glad to hear that".

"Jaune…I'm sorry, I gave your flowers away. I thought that they might help her more. Please don't be mad" Violet pleaded; she was a bit ashamed of not asking him first.

"Oh, no, It's ok. Honestly, I kind of bought those by accident" Jaune replied, scratching the back of his head.

Violet was relieved and chuckled a bit. "Really? It must have been destiny then, hehe".

"…Destiny…" That word…That word resounded in Jaune's head and weighted heavy in is heart.

"Yeah. Do you believe in destiny?" Violet asked, not knowing what those words meant for him.

It might have been the sorrow he saw on that day, but those words hit him harder than he expected. Just like the old woman, Jaune had also lost a loved one. The memory of that evening when Pyrrha said those same words to him. "Do you believe in destiny?", those words filled Jaune's mind with image of happier days…and of more tragic ones.

"Jaune?".

"Wha…No….I don't" Jaune replied, snapping out of it and quickly grabbing a sack of potatoes.

Violet quickly realized something wasn't right. She saw how Jaune nervously struggled with some potatoes that fell off the sack. She slowly walked towards him and when he finally stood up, she grabbed his face softly.

"I've seen those eyes before". She said, much to Jaune's surprise and confusion. Violet let go of his face. She turned her head to see the flowers in front of the old woman's house, a sad expression on her face and her hand closed on her chest as if she was holding her pained heart. After a short bit, she turned again, looking at Jaune straight in the eyes, "Come, I want to show you something".

Violet took Jaune a few blocks away from the old woman's house. She looked around to make sure there weren't any guards watching them and once the coast was clear, she and Jaune got inside a small alleyway. The alleyway was too narrow, so they had to leave their things outside to fit in it. Jaune couldn't help to feel a bit claustrophobic, and the spiders didn't make the experience any less uncomfortable.

"Where are we going?".

"We are almost there", Violet replied.

After a few seconds, Jaune noticed the brick wall in front of him had stopped and in its place, a large wooden fence stood before him, some ivies were tangled around its planks. Violet stopped to remove a large metal plate that was leaning on the wooden fence. "This way", she said.

Jaune followed her inside, just to be shocked at the beauty of a hidden garden in the middle of this city. The place was quite big and green plants covered every corner of it. Flowers painted the garden with every color of the rainbow, and the hummingbirds flying around just made the place feel more and more alive. In the middle of an ivy-covered brick wall, a little shrine stood with a picture of a family. Violet scrambled around a small metal box and took out some incense and a tiny fire dust crystal to turn them on. She placed the lit incense in front of the picture before turned back at Jaune. "Come, I want you to meet someone".

Jaune walked carefully and stood next to Violet, who had a sorrowful smile.

"This is my secret garden. I come here every time I want to talk to my parents". She said.

"Your…parents..." Jaune said, before realizing that the family on the picture was most likely Violet's, this was an altar on their memory. "I…Violet, I'm so sorry".

"Thank you, that's so kind of you" She said, the sad smile not leaving her face for a moment. "I come here to remember them. To remember all those hugs my dad gave me. To remember the kisses from my mom. Hehe, I remember how soft and fluffy her tail was, it was so cute".

"Tail?".

"Oh, yeah. My dad was a human like me, but my mom was a faunus just like my sister". Violet explained.

Jaune found himself with a weird sense of peace in this place, but that didn't prevent his mind from remembering, it didn't prevent his heart to feel that heavy weight in it.

"Jaune…I brought you here for a reason". Violet said. "I've seen your eyes before. The old woman today had them. My sister had them, and so did I". She continued.

Jaune turned his face away from her in shame, but Violet softly turned it back at her. "Jaune…you lost someone, didn't you? Those eyes…You still haven't let go yet".

She read him like a book. It was true, it had been so long since that fateful night at Beacon, the night he lost Pyrrha, and still, that last kiss hunted him at every single moment.

"I…yes. Her name was Pyrrha and ever since she…Everything has been so hard and confusing" Jaune said, trying to hold in his sorrow.

"Have you talked about it with someone? Family, friends?".

"I. I have…a little. Not much. Look, my friends and I have a lot of things to worry about already and …I really…I just don't feel is right for me to bother them".

"But they are your friends, aren't they? If you are in so much pain, don't you think they might want to know and help?", Violet replied.

"I'm ok".

"No, you are not. Jaune…I use to be like you" Violet said, once again holding her heart. "When I lost my parents, I spent years pretending I was fine. I didn't want to bring that pain to my sister, so I stayed quiet. But every night I cried myself to sleep, I even started to become bitter and lashed in anger at everyone, even those who were just trying to help me".

"Violet…".

"You can't bottle up that pain, Jaune. It will only kill you from inside".

"Well is not that simple, ok?!" Jaune said, pain and anger could be heard in his drowned voice. "Is not that simple …Pyrrha. What happened…It was my fault. I can't just let her go and pretend I didn't love her".

Violet turned once more to face the altar of her family, "That's not what I'm saying", she said. "I'm not saying you should forget her. How could you, if you loved her that much?" she continued. "But if you don't release your pain, it will consume you. It's why I hate these..these laws. The major basically made it illegal to feel. We can't cry, we can't be mad and we have to deal with this…this indignation while our departed are disrespected!". Violet's hand made a fist, which made Jaune notice her own pain and sorrow.

"Jaune. You won't heal if you keep that venom inside you. If you do, you will never find peace" She finished.

Violet's words resounded in Jaune's heart. Maybe she was right. He couldn't keep pretending he was fine. He really didn't think he was that good of an actor either, not with the way his friends looked at him, not with the way he acted in front of Cinder. His family and friends did want to help him, show him that support he so desperately needed. At that moment he realized that maybe, he was just hurting them more by not saying anything than he thought he would by telling how in pain he was.

Violet gave him a kind smile, "Promise me you won't bottle up anymore".

Jaune smiled back at her "I won't. I'll give it my best shot. Thank you, Violet".

The two of them shared a hug before leaving the garden. As they walked to the gate, Jaune though about what Violet said about the city and decided to return her words of encouragement to ease her own pain.

"Violet?" He said, catching her attention. "I'm sorry for what's happening to your people…The departed…I would do anything if it meant I could help".

"Anything? How far are you willing to go?" Violet responded much to Jaune's surprise. "Would you sell your soul if it meant you could give them peace?" She said.

Jaune was completely caught off guard by this response and he would be lying if it didn't send chill to his skin.

Violet gave him a sweet smile and chuckled a little, "You are too kind and silly you know? Hehe" she said before going thought the gate, back to the alleyway.

* * *

Jaune and Violet finally made it to the Cathedral of Saint Agnes. As they approached the ancient temple, Violet told the story of it. The Cathedral was originally built by Saint Agnes the Just centuries before the Great War. Although temples of the Faith of the Two Brothers normally depicted both gods, The Cathedral of Saint Agnes as well as their preaching and their convent were all fully dedicated to the God of Light. It was their believe that the God of Light was a guardian of the living, and as such, it was worthy of complete devotion, unlike his brother who was but a bringer of death.

As Jaune and Violet made it inside the Cathedral, Jaune saw in awe the ancient architecture of the temple and its beautiful stained glasses. He saw how many other sisters worked tirelessly as they took care of the inside of the Cathedral. All wearing their white habits as they cleaned the temple and put in flowers on small pots. Jaune saw in curiosity how some sisters where lighting candles placed high above with a device he had never seen before, a long black metal rod with a hollow bulb like spiral that hosted a fire dust crystal in the middle.

As they approached the middle of the Cathedral a rather upset voice echoed in the temple.

"Violet! Where have you been?!". The voice came from an angry sister, her hair was crimson red but the most peculiar part of her was her fluffy red fox tail. "All you had to do was get some potatoes. What took you so long?!".

"Vi...Victoria! I'm so sorry, we ran into an old lady and her husband and…" Violet nervously tried to explain, but Victoria's worries for her sister turned in deaf anger.

"I don't want excus…Wait. We?" She said, somehow not noticing the tall blonde man standing behind her little sister.

Victoria's eye got wide opened. Her face became…worried. She really wasn't comfortable with Jaune being close to her sister. But what was more concerning to her was…she seemed to recognize him, from somewhere.

Jaune started to feel rather awkward and Violet quickly picked up on it. "Ah! Jaune, this is my sister, Victoria. Victoria, this is Jaune, he helped me bring the sacks from the market".

"It's a pleasure to meet you" He said awkwardly.

Victoria stared at him, walking past her sister. "Thanks for bringing her. Now leave", She said, much to Jaune's surprise. Violet on the other hand was nervous at her sister's sudden rudeness towards the nice man she just met.

Jaune didn't know how to act. Victoria was acting really hostile towards him; she didn't want him near her sister for a second. The awkward moment was broken when the voice of an elder woman was heard.

"My, Victoria. That's not way to treat visitors".

"Mother Emilia". Victoria replied, giving another angry look at Jaune before she walked away from him.

Mother Emilia was the headmistress of the convent of Saint Agnes. She was an old but quite strong woman, she sported a kind smile at all times but her presence also inspired respect. "Violet, dear. What took you so long?".

"Mother Emilia. I'm sorry, Jau…this kind young man, was helping me carry the sacks from the market and on our way, we helped an old lady, she...lost her husband when we arrived. We helped her deal with the guards and stayed with her until her family arrived".

"You dealt with the guards?!" Victoria replied, still being overprotective of her little sister.

"Victoria, please" Mother Emilia responded, she then turned to Jaune. "Thank you so much, young man. I'm sorry you had to see such tragedy".

"It's ok, ma'am. I'm glad that I could help". Jaune said.

Mother Emilia gave Jaune a far warmer welcome to the Cathedral than Victoria, who still gave him a stink eye.

Victoria then had an idea and with a snarky smile, she asked Jaune, "You aren't from around here, are you? What are you? A tourist? A merchant?".

"Oh, no. I'm a huntsman". Jaune replied, but to his surprise, Violet's eyes got wide open. She never asked about why he visited Sevillana, the thought never crossed her mind. Jaune never mentioned either, the topic never really came up. But Violet's reaction of shock was odd to him. Was this a bad thing? Why would it be?

Mother Emilia still sported her smile, but her tone became a bit more serious. "I see. Well, thank you again for your kind help. I would have to ask you to be on your way, though. There is an event at city hall tonight and the major has asked our aid".

"Oh, sure. It was nice to meet you all. And, Violet…Thank you, for everything". Jaune said although he felt as if he was being kicked out.

As Jaune left, Violet tried to talk to him before he was gone "Jaun…", but she was suddenly stopped by her sister.

Victoria waited for Jaune to exit the building and as soon as he did, she told her little sister, "Of all people, you had to bring a huntsman, didn't you?".

"I…I didn't know…". Violet said, she looked ashamed but as soon as Victoria and Mother Emilia left the scene, she lifted her head and looked in Jaune's direction. Her eyes had regret and worry in them.

* * *

The sun was setting when Jaune arrived at the main plaza of Sevillana. He was a bit tired and decided to recover for a while on a bench. That peace didn't last long though, when someone softly…Yelled in his ear.

"QUIT SLACKING OFF, SQUIRE!".

"AH! Don! We talked about this!" Jaune screamed as his master joyfully hooped before sitting next to his protégé.

"Oh, come on! You know you missed me".

"Yeah, right. I kind of liked the peace and quiet" Jaune answered before sharing a laugh with his mentor, Don even messing Jaune's hair playfully.

"Found out something about our case?" Don asked, much to Jaune's shame.

"Not really. I kind of got distracted. I learned some things about this place and its laws though".

"I see…Well, is alright, because your amazing mentor DID learn a lot today!" Don said proudly; "Come on, lad! We are going to be late". Don said as he stood up from the bench.

"For what?".

"A meeting at City Hall. While you were slacking off, I got us a job with the major himself! Ill catch you up on our way, let's go!".

The major. Don seemed excited of working with him, but Jaune wasn't so sure. Not after what he had seen, not after the way Violet spoke of him.

Don told Jaune everything he found out about the witches. How they stole personal items from the people and used them to send Grimm after them. Jaune quickly understood the state of the city, he had also seen the damaged buildings and a constant flow of Grimm attacks made perfect sense in that case. The more he heard about the witches' actions, the more concerned he grew; however, he gave it more and more thought as there were still missing pieces in this puzzle.

City Hall was full of concerned citizens. The major had arranged a meeting with the public which he hosted inside the main ball room.

Jaune and Don entered the place as guests of honor, clearly Don's charms were at play as they were given special treatment thanks to Don's new partnership with the major. To Jaune's surprise, the sisters of Saint Agnes' convent were attending the meeting, helping greet the people and serve the food.

As they stood near the snack bar, Don continued discussing the matter with his student.

"So, what do you think? Is it one of your maidens?" Don asked as he stuffed his mouth with food.

"I don't know. But I don't think so. As far as I know, the maidens don't need to steal things to do magic. They also don't control the Grimm. Salem though, she can do that, but why a town like this? It just seems like she wouldn't be interested in it". Jaune explained.

"Maybe, they have one of your macguffins here".

"No, we took care of Mistral's relic. The two we haven't seen are in Vacuo and Vale. And even if they were here, it still doesn't make sense. The Grimm come after the witches are seen, if Salem wanted to steal the relic it would be the other way around, the Grimm attack first to destroy everything and her people would then come to get the relic". He replied.

Don finished shallowing his food before continuing "Ok, then is not your evil witch lady. Thank the gods. But now, what we need to do is capture one and get to the bottom of this".

"Capture one?".

"Is part of the job, kid! The major sent a request to Mistral for huntsmen to capture the witches. He said he was so happy that finally they sent a group of us to help out". Don continued.

Jaune still had his concerns about the major, and he couldn't hide it anymore from Don. "Do you trust him? The major?".

"I don't trust politicians, kid. But he seems like he cares for this city. There are a few things that have me concerned about him though…like his laws, his so-called social projects". Don replied.

"Yeah, I saw those first-hand today" Jaune said. He then told Don everything he saw regarding the major's laws. How even letting your child cry was a criminal offense, how by law you aren't allow to mourn your dead love ones. The people were living in fear of their own emotions, all thanks to the extremism of the major.

Don was shocked to learn this, but not too surprised, he had his suspensions, just didn't know it was this bad. Through their talk, they both realized that the citizens had a very strong opinion, but not a good course of action, they all feared the witches but majority also saw the major as incompetent and his actions ineffective and harmful.

"Wait. The major said he was happy a group of huntsmen came to the city? Weren't you the only one there?". Jaune asked his mentor who really didn't though about it. However, before he could answer, the major appeared and started the meeting.

"Good evening, ladies and gentlemen! My dear citizens, I welcome you all. With great pleasure, I'm here to announce that not 1 but 2! teams of huntsmen have…" The major started saying, but he clearly didn't know his audience. The citizens interrupted him rudely and without any respect for his supposed authority.

"Cut to the chase!".

"Yeah! The Witches are coming! Quit goofing around, you useless prick!".

"What are you going to do?!"

"Why haven't you fix this already!?".

The crowd was growing angry and the guards were getting ready act.

"I…pardon me…We are…" The major struggled to answer to those comments, he became nervous and his voice cracked a bit.

"Ill take it from here, Major". A voice was heard coming from behind Jaune and Don. A voice that for Jaune was far too familiar.

Jaune looked in shock at the sight of the team of huntsmen taking over the meeting. "Ca…Cardin".

Team CRDL of Beacon Academy walked towards the center stage, but as they passed by Jaune, Cardin Winchester did nothing but give him a side eye. The rest of the team all noticed him, but didn't address him, too intimidated by the attitude of their leader.

Cardin sported a five o'clock shadow now, his armor had multiple marks from previous battles, he had a confident and quite arrogant look. But the same could not be said about his teammates. The rest of team CRDL, Russel, Sky and Dove, they all seemed exhausted and beaten, their clothes had far more damage and the three of them had bags on their eyes.

Cardin took center stage, taking over from the major. "Citizens of Sevillana! You don't have to worry anymore! Your heroes are here to save you!".

"Not worry?! With those witches out there?!".

Cardin looked at the yelling man in anger, intimidating him into silence, after a little chuckle, he continued. "Don't get me wrong people. You have every right to fear the witches, in fact you should. The witches will come after every single one of you until this city is NOTHING BUT ASH!" he said, much to the crowd's dismay.

People started talking amongst themselves before Cardin continued, "But you don't have to worry! Your major! He has contacted us! And we came here on a crusade to END THOSE WITCHES!". The citizens saw Cardin's confidence and started to be influenced by his words, applauding him.

"Your city has a plague, people, and we will exterminate it! But to do that, I need your help, ladies and gentlemen. I need your strength!". He continued.

"Wait…Exterminate…" The major tried to argue for a moment, but he stopped when he realized how on board with the idea the citizens were. "That's right! Exterminate them!" he said.

"Hold it right there!" Don intervened, him and Jaune stepping on to the stage. "The mission was to capture them, you never said anything about an extermination".

"BOOOO! COWARD!" the crowd started to yell, which prompted the major to turn against Don.

"If a true witch hunt is what we need. SO BE IT!".

"Speaking of which" Cardin added before, plugging his scroll on a socket, this connected it to the projector of the hall and showed a picture.

"Ladies and gentlemen, THIS is a picture we took two days ago of one of your WITCHES!" Cardin presented much to the crowd's horror.

The picture was taken at night with a flash as the witch escaped. It showed a female figure with crimson red hair, she was wearing a black cloak and a pointy black and gold hat, she also had a mask covering the bottom half of her face, the witch was wielding a black steel staff. All this matched the description of the witches from eye witness, but the feature Cardin pointed attention to the most was the witch's particular red fox tail.

"As you can see, your witch problem, is also a faunus problem!" Cardin said, much to the horror of the crowd.

"We have seen it before, people. Back at the Fall of Beacon" He continued. The mere mention of that tragedy alarmed the crowd even more, and lit a rage in Jaune's heart.

"What are you talking about?!" Jaune said.

"Didn't the White Fang attack Beacon?! Aren't they just a bunch of faunus!? You were there, so don't try to deny it!" Cardin said to shut Jaune down immediately. "The day of the fall, the White Fang brought faunus witches with them, it was their magic what sent the endless horde of Grimm to Vale!" He continued.

Jaune was in shock at this claim. It was true that the White Fang had a hand on the Fall and the Grimm rampage. But witches? Magic? The only one of those was Cinder herself, did Cardin know? No, he couldn't have. "You don't know what you are talking about, Cardin!".

"LIER! THE FAUNUS ARE WITCHES!" The crowd started to yell.

"Wh..what should we do, then?" The major asked at Cardin as the crowd's support for him increased more and more.

"I propose we start our witch hunt by rounding up all the faunus in the city. Arrest them all and question them. Get them to talk…at any cost" Cardin said.

The crowd supported him, much to the terror of the faunus in it. Jaune and Don were horrified at the proposal as well as the reaction to it. Jaune knew he had to do something, but the crowd was too eager to start their witch hunt. Hysteria wasn't going to let them consider the moral implication of what they were about to do, so Jaune decided to play around the major and the citizen's new found culture, their obedience towards the major's laws.

"Hold on! Listen to what you are saying! The Grimm are attracted to negative emotions. If you start to round up the faunus, imagine the mass fear that would cause! Fear will mean Grimm!" He said, hoping this argument would convince the crowd. "Major, don't do this. You are putting people in danger" He pleaded to the major, hoping this would convince him to reconsider. Jaune was ready to oppose this proposal no matter what, the lives of many innocent people were at stake.

The major thought about it, his policies were the back bone of his administration, if this would go against his own laws it would discredit his efforts. "You are right, we can't attract the Grimm" he said, much to Cardin's annoyance.

"COWARDS!" The crowd responded.

To prevent them from causing a riot, the major ended the meeting, claiming that he would discuss the next course of action with the two teams of Huntsmen.

The crowd was taken outside the building along side the two teams of Huntsmen. After a few minutes, CRDL managed to make it outside but got caught at the entrance of the City Hall by Jaune who had been running after them.

"Cardin!" Jaune said.

Cardin and his team stopped, the rest of team CRDL faced towards Jaune, their faces insecure, shameful and fearful. Cardin on the other hand had his back toward Jaune.

"What do you think you are doing?!" Jaune demanded to know.

Cardin calmly responded. "Jaune…Do me a favor", he said, before turning around and looking at Jaune straight in the eyes, "Please get in my way. I would love to crack your skull open". With this threat, Cardin and his team walked away, leaving Jaune with the uncertainty of what they would do next.

Jaune stood there, his worries growing at every second. Things were becoming more serious than he had expected. The witches, the major, and now this. What was more, he was also growing concerned for Cardin and his teammates, not only for what they were capable of, but also for just what happened to them. They were always bullies, but this? To get to such extremes? His train of thought was derailed, when he spotted Violet asking him to walk over her.

Violet was standing next to the City Hall and as she saw Jaune walking on her direction, she quickly walked to an alleyway next to the building.

Jaune ran to the alleyway, he found it odd but maybe Violet needed his help with something. He finally made it inside to the alleyway.

"Viol…" He started to say, only to be met with a black metal staff to the neck. Violet had him pinned down against a wall.

"Stay out of this!".

* * *

Don made it out the building but lost Jaune on the crowd. "Where did that kid go now?".

The crowd was gathering around to talk to the major in front of the City Hall. He was the last person to come out of the building. He was immediately surrounded by the press and the people to ask him for his comments regarding the meeting and the witch hunt.

"I told you people, I'll have to discuss our next course of action with our huntsmen" He said, but the crowd kept pressuring him.

Don was standing behind him at quite the distance, a bit upset that he didn't get the exclusivity of the job, but even more angry at the change in objective. Don was ok with capturing the witches and arrest them, there was no harm in that, but what the major wanted to do now was an execution, and he certainly didn't feel comfortable with the idea.

Suddenly, the doors of the City Hall shut close and all the lights on the block turned off. The guards were on high alert to protect the major, but they were soon dealt with when ice was used to immobilize them. An ice wall appeared from each side of City Hall, trapping the major, the crowd, team CRDL and Don in a massive circle.

The people were in panic, but their screams of terror became an attentive silence, when flame where seen on the roof of the building. Like torches, the Witches' staves lit the darkness and reveled their presence to the crowd.

"Citizens of Sevillana! Hear our words!" The leader of the witches spoke. "Your major! The insolent rat! Has disrespected the spirits of the dead!"

The crowd listened in attention and fear.

"An insult to the dead is an insult to the Dark Brother himself!" The witch leader proclaimed as her sisters slammed their staves on the floor, sending flames to the night sky.

"We are the Coven of Saint Aradia. Devoted daughters of the God of Darkness. And this is your ultimatum!". She continued. "The major must resign in the next 24 hours; his laws must be deleted from this land and he must be delivered to us! If not, then the souls of the dead will swarm this apathic city, and consume it entirely!" The witch declared.

* * *

"Vio…let" Jaune struggled to say as Violet kept him pinned to the wall.

"You are staying out of this! Don't make me hur…" She said, but was interrupted when Jaune overpowered her, pushing her to the side.

Jaune struggled to recover his breath, but soon enough he turned to see Violet who managed to quickly stand up.

With an angry look, Violet placed a mask to cover the bottom half of her face and with a snap of her fingers, she ignited the dust woven into her habit. The dust fabric lighted up with a purple flame that quickly transformed the white habit into a black cloak and the veil into a pointy hat.

Jaune's eyes were wide open at the sight of Violet as she reveled herself a witch.

Violet pointed her staff towards Jaune. By instinct, Jaune tried to reach for his sword, but soon remembered he left it with the Black smith.

The fire dust in the staff allowed Violet to shoot fire balls at the defenseless Jaune, who struggled to evade her attacks and got hit multiple times, even getting pushed to the ground with a particularly powerful one.

Jaune managed to roll to the side and evade another fireball, and as he got a bit of cover behind a barrel he managed to stand up, however, as soon as he did, Violet had closed the gap between them and started her close range assault, hitting Jaune with her staff at a high speed.

Violet swung her staff multiple times while Jaune blocked her strikes with his arms and evaded some of them. She eventually started to spin the staff until flames started to come out of the metal spiral end and she blasted Jaune once more.

"Stay down!" She said, but Jaune wasn't done yet.

He took a couple of empty cans that were next to him and threw them at Violet, who simply blocked them with her staff, but this was a distraction as Jaune quickly stood up and started his counter attack.

Jaune had been training in hand to hand combat for situations like this, so the speed of his punches was too much for Violet to handle on her own. She blocked a couple punches but had to resort to other tactics to get him off her quickly.

Violet flicked a switch in her staff which activated a mechanism in it, soon enough, the fire dust went inside the staff and was quickly replaced with wind dust, which she then used to blow Jaune away.

Jaune struggled but he managed to remain standing, the wind blow was a strong stream but to Violet's surprise, Jaune was managing to walk against it.

"Why…are you…doing this?!" Jaune asked as he pushed against the strong wind.

"Just give up! Please!" Violet replied.

When the wind resulted ineffective, Violet switched to something with more power, she got explosive dust on her staff and was ready to blast Jaune away, but as soon as she stopped the stream, Jaune ran closer to her. Startled and with Jaune right in front of her, Violet accidently activated the explosive dust, hitting the floor right in front of her. The resulting explosion sent Jaune flying towards a wall, and Violet toward the street, outside the alleyway.

The explosion caught the attention of the crowd and the witches. Panic was spreading amongst the people.

The leader of the witches saw how Violet was struggling to stand up in the middle of the street, which prompted her to signal her sisters to make their exit.

As the witches left, the lights were turned back on and a guard outside the ice wall saw Violet as she stood up. "WITCH!".

Violet ran pass him in a panic, she speeded up through the street to make her escape.

The explosion prompted Don to try to see between the separations of the ice spikes of the wall, he was worried for his apprentice, and to his surprise and concern, he saw how Jaune rushed from the alleyway and ran chasing the witch on his own, "JAUNE!".

Violet ran as fast as she could and everywhere the people yelled in terror at her sight. She was concerned of any guard chasing her, but when she turned to check, all she saw was Jaune running after her.

Violet quickly tried to lose Jaune by running through the maze of alleyways in the city. She knew these streets better than him, but Jaune was too fast for her, and had no intention of giving up.

Violet switched once more to fire dust and attempted to slow him down by shooting a couple at him. But her accuracy was lacking and Jaune was able to evade them all.

The two of them kept running until Violet spotted a signal fire on top of a building. She then made a quick turn into an alleyway to her left, Jaune following her to it. She was desperate to finally lose him. She switched to ice dust and quickly tried to make an ice wall to stop him in his tracks, but Jaune was too fast, he jumped on a few wooden boxes and leaped forward, barely passing the ice wall forming behind him.

Violet had no time to waste, she used earth dust to summon a stair she could climb to the roof of one of the buildings. She got up the rock stair as fast as she could, but Jaune was catching up.

She finally made it and ran in a panic, she looked around trying see any sign of her witch sisters, but it was hard to see any at night even with the full moon in the sky. She knew she didn't have much time, so she switched to her secret weapon, lighting dust. Before she was ready though she heard a voice coming from behind her.

"Violet, please stop!" Jaune pleaded to her.

Violet got startled and turned around in a panic, ready to attack Jaune once more, however, she didn't notice the puddle she was standing on and slipped and fell as soon as she fired the lighting dust. A lighting bolt went up and hit a construction crane, making a stack of bricks fall right on top of her.

"VIOLET!".

"AHHHH!", She covered her head with her arms fearing the worst. The bricks fell on her, crashing violently.

A cloud of dust covered the roof of the building…but when the dust settled, Violet opened her eyes, and saw Jaune hugging her and covering her from the bricks. He had boosted their auras and managed to save her life.

Violet saw him with shock and once everything got clear, Jaune let her go and addressed her.

"Violet! Are you ok?!".

Violet's eyes became a bit teary "…Why?".

"What do you mean? You almost died!" Jaune replied. "Violet, what's going on? Please talk to me!".

Violet couldn't look at him in the eyes. She had a fearful and shameful expression. She lifted her head a bit and saw a signal flame from the building behind Jaune.

She pushed Jaune to the ground and quickly took her staff before standing up. Jaune was still in shock and was tired from the chase.

Violet stood in front of him with the full moon behind her, she took her mask off and held her heart before saying. "Stay out of this…Please…I'm begging you".

As Violet finished, she put her mask on once more and ran to the edge of the building, she shot a blast of wind dust to launch herself to the air, and as she did, another witch flew by riding her staff like a broom and grabbed her hand.

Jaune then saw as Violet and the witch flew into the night sky towards the forest outside the city, vanishing in the distance.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reading.
> 
> As always, I would appreciate any feedback both positive and negative.
> 
> Hope you enjoy it.


	8. The Book of Shadows

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Between a coven of witches and an extremist goverment. Jaune must pick a side to protect the people from this war...but which is the right side?

**Chapter VIII**

**The Book of Shadows**

"Everyone! Back off!" Cardin kept yelling, mace in hand he started smashing the ice imprisoning a guard with all his strength. It took him several strikes to fully break it but soon enough the guard was free and Cardin moved along for his next rescue.

The citizens of Sevillana were in a panic. The witches they had feared for months had finally revealed themselves and proved not even the guards could keep them save from them.

"Citizens, please. Calm down, we…" The major tried to plead, but the crowd wasn't having any of it.

"Calm down?! Are you kidding me?!".

"There are guards trapped in ice! Who is to say what they will do to us?!".

"Maybe we should hand you over! That's what they want!". The terrified and angry citizens kept saying.

"WHAT?! No! wait! I can fix this! I promise!" Responded the Major nervously. He was losing the support of the people at every second. His own panic grew more and more as the crowd's fear started to make them more aggressive.

"OK! THAT'S IT! SHOW IS OVER EVERYONE!" Don intervened, standing between the angry and scared crowd and the panicking major. Don covered the major with his own cape and walked him away from the crowd as they shouted at the two men.

"Th…thank you so much!".

"Yeah, yeah. This is just getting started, buddy. And you and I need to have serious talk later" Don replied, much to the major's shame. As they walked back to city hall, the few guards that managed to be released from the witches' ice were trying their best to get the doors open. Don approached them to deliver their major safely.

"Sir! Are you alright?! Create a perimeter around the major! Now!" A guard instructed her subordinates, who promptly mobilized to protect the major.

"I'm ok, I'm ok. Just get this damn door open before something else happENNN!" The major said, getting startled by the crashing sound of a section of the ice wall falling to the ground.

Bulldozers from the constructions sides nearby were being used to get rid of all traces of the wall. Soon enough, the guards outside the wall rushed in to help the people get out.

Don stood in front of the city hall, observing the situation. How the people were in terror, how the major wasn't competent enough to deal with this matter. He was worried that this city would fall into chaos soon, but at the time, his worries were also placed on the safety of his young apprentice.

Cardin approached Don, mace in hand and placed over his should. His team were following him as always. "You see?! THIS is why we need a witch hunt. You stupid old man!".

"Did your mom never slap you with a sandal when you said crap like that, boy?!" Don replied, pissed off at this kid's attitude.

"The witches are going to burn this city to the ground, and I will be the one to stop them because I'm willing to do what is necessary! Unlike you and Jaune, you useless fucks!" Cardin said, pushing Don to the edge.

Don quickly and angrily pulled Cardin by the neck of his armor "Now you listen to me, you little brat!" He started to threaten him, but his attention was quickly caught by the sight of his apprentice approaching city hall, holding his left side and limping a little. "JAUNE!".

Don rushed to his apprentice's side to help him walk. "Kid! Are you ok?!".

"I just took a bomb to the face, but sure, I'm ok, let's go with that" He jokingly responded, although he was clearly still in pain.

"Running away from the party, I see" Cardin said, taunting Jaune with a smug face.

Jaune stood up and walked away from Don and towards Cardin. "I followed and fought a witch while you were sitting here shaking your knees, Cardin". He replied, much to Cardin's annoyance.

"You fought a witch?! Excellent! Then where is she?" The major said excitingly while covered in a blanket. Cardin however didn't share his excitement and took the chance to push Jaune down a peg.

"Yeah. Where is she, oh mighty hero?"

Jaune was starting to get mad, but he knew his answer wasn't going to do him any favors, he looked down in shame before replying, "She…escaped".

"So, she beat you and you let her run away. Haha. Classic Jaune" Cardin said mockingly.

The major was disappointed and worried, "There has to be something! A clue, a lead, anything! We have 24hrs before they end us! We have to stop them at any cost!".

At any cost, Jaune knew what those words meant. The major was more than willing to follow Cardin into this witch hunt. They were getting ready to trample the witches and leave nothing but blood and ashes on their path.

"I saw where they went". Jaune said, catching the attention of Don, the major and team CRDL. "They flew north. Towards the coast. Maybe they are hiding there, I don't know, but that's where they went".

"Wonderful! Guards! Organize every officer you have; we are heading north! Don't let a single rock unturned! Find them! FIND THEM I TELL YOU!". The major instructed to his men, eager to follow the lead.

Cardin gave Jaune an angry look, he stared at him for a few seconds, but Jaune stared back, standing his ground. "The witches are mine. Let's go, guys. We have a hunt". Cardin said, him and his team headed north with the guards, all ready for battle.

As the troops ran pass them and their rival huntsmen were far enough, Don was getting ready to run north and join the search, but suddenly, Jaune grabbed his arms and started pulling him on the opposite direction.

"Hey! Wait, wait. What are you doing, kid?! Where are we going?".

"South".

"But you said…"

"I know what I said, just hurry up, we don't have much time".

* * *

Steadfast, Jaune and Don managed to avoid detection through the city and made it into the south mountain forest. The full moon gave them a bit of light to transverse the woods, but even then, they were walking blindly, uncertain if they were even on the right path.

"How are you holding up, kid?". Don asked, worried for his student's health, but Jaune was walking with more confidence, his aura helped him heal but it was his determination what kept pushing him forward.

"I'm fine. I'll be better when we find them. Ugh! If only I had seen where they landed!".

Don noticed Jaune's attitude, he was actually very proud of his student giving it his all, but he also noticed how clearly upset he was. "You aren't doing anything by getting mad, lad. Don't let Mr. Douche Face get under your skin".

Jaune stopped and tried to calm down a bit. "It's not Cardin, although he doesn't help either" He said, taking a deep breath before continuing. "It's…Remember when I told you I got distracted today?".

"Sure".

"Well…I spent all day helping a sister of the cathedral".

"The same ones that were at City Hall?". Don asked.

"Yeah. Her name was Violet. She needed some help and I gave her a hand" Jaune continued, "It was with her that I saw what the major has been doing. She is a kind person…and she…".

"Oh…The witch you chased was…". Don asked

"I…Yeah…It was Violet" Jaune replied.

Don rubbed the back of his head "Arg, so that's how they ambushed us. The sisters were at City Hall. They must have been the ones organizing the attack. The major invited the witches to his own house and he didn't even notice it".

"Probably".

"Nice work, lad. Now if we can capture one and take her to the guards, we can…" Don tried to argue but Jaune stopped him almost immediately.

"We are not handing them over" Jaune said, much to Don's surprise. "I…just want to know what is going on and stop it…And I also want to know if Violet is ok" He continued, his tone ever so serious.

Don approached his student "Ah…I see how it is…I was afraid of this…" He said, he then put his hands on Jaune's shoulders before continuing "She bewitched you! Don't fall for her love charm, my boy! Fight those impulses! Sure, she looks gorgeous now, but in 20 years she will get all saggy and take the kids!".

"IT'S NOT THAT!".

Don laughed and messed with Jaune's hair. Whether he realized it or not, Jaune needed to lighten up a little, and Don was really good at doing so.

"Well, we won't be helping anyone standing here", Don said.

"I know. I just saw them heading in this direction, but I lost track of them" Jaune replied, growing a bit frustrated, "It's too dark and there isn't a clear road".

Don looked behind Jaune and noticed something that may just had been the lead they were looking for. "That's not entirely true". He walked past Jaune towards what seemed to be a small section of an old stone wall on the side of the mountain. "You see this? Stone walls like this usually were used for roads. This city is very old so maybe there use to be something up the mountain. We just have to look for whatever sections of the road are left and follow them".

"We can't be sure there is something there nor if that's where they went".

"It's the best we got, kid".

Jaune gave it a quick thought, this really wasn't much, but Don was right, it was the only lead they had, "Alright. Let's go then".

Jaune and Don walked for over an hour, getting ever so deep into the woods as they followed the old road up the mountain. The darkness of the forest made it difficult to find the remains of the old road, but They were able to remain on path. As they walked up the mountain, they started to find stone steps as well as some clearings in the forest that definitely looked like resting areas for travelers. From those clearings, the city could be seen entirely and as they walked up eventually, they could even see the sea.

It took them around 2 hours from the city, but they finally reached what seemed to be the end of the path. A big clearing in the forest, a plateau with some patches of grass and standing in the middle and covered in vines, there were the ruins of an old temple.

"Maybe this is i…" Jaune started to say before Don covered his mouth and pulled him behind a tree.

To their surprise, confirmation arrived in the form of a group of 4 witches. They seemed to come from a different road. One of them noticed a sound that caught her attention, much to Don and Jaune's worry, but luckily, she didn't give it much thought and just followed her sisters towards the temple. The witches were all wielding their staves on one hand but they were also carrying bags, it was hard to distinguish what they had inside but some had different shapes than others, as if their contends were different in size.

The witches headed inside the ruined temple, closing the wooden door behind them.

Jaune and Don stood close to each other as they picked their heads out from behind the tree. "That was a close one. But now we know this is the spot! Come on, lad! Let's step into the mouth of hell itself and face our destiny!".

"…Did you cut your beard?".

"I don't want to talk about it…".

The two huntsmen waited a minute before carefully making their approach to the temple. As Jaune went for the door, Don noticed something curious. A side wall was down and in fact the temple had many open ways, there really was no need for the door in the first place. From outside, the interior of the temple looked even more abandoned than the exterior, with grass growing on the floor and rubble all around. Jaune and Don entered the temple through the wall´s hole and slowly and carefully walked its corridors.

Inside the temple, everything was covered with plants and dust. Spider webs were in every corner. It took them a little bit to make their way to the middle of the temple, the main ceremonial hall, curiously enough, there were no signs of the witches yet. The broken walls and roof allowed the place to be fully illuminated by the moon light itself, which allowed them to see the architecture of the ruins. Jaune and Don started to feel unsettle at the many sights of Grimm depictions. Statues and old paintings of Beowolves, Ursas, Nevermores and many other species of Grimm. The details on them made their skins crawl…But interestingly, Jaune noticed that many of the art pieces also depicted humans in their small details, not being butchered by these beasts, but rather confronting them.

Jaune was quite creeped out but he soon got goosebumps when he saw his master standing still and looking up as if a ghost had walked out of its grave and stared at them.

"Don?" Jaune tried to reach his master who stood there in shock. He took a look at whatever had terrified his master that much and just like Don, his face became pale with terror at the sight.

It was a large statue of a massive demonic dragon like creature pointing in their direction, a skull for a head and spiral horns, behind him a broken stained glass depicted a humanoid figure with the same horns, twisting his head as Grimm worshiped him. It was clear now why they felt so uneasy, this was a temple to the God of Darkness.

"Don…Maybe this wasn't a good idea…"

"It…It's fine, lad…there is nothing to be afraid of…" Don replied, but right afterwards, the silence of the ruined temple was broken by the faint sound of a ghostly chant.

Don jumped to hug Jaune in fear "What was that?!".

"It…it sounds like singing…." Jaune said.

The two released each other and Jaune carefully tried to follow the sound. It was faint but clear enough that it must had been coming from nearby. Yet Jaune and Don couldn't see where it came from. Jaune was puzzled, they saw 4 witches coming inside the temple, yet there was no sign of them at all. Where did they go?

Jaune took a look around and turned back at the statue of the God of Darkness. He noticed how it seemed to be pointing at him…or was it really at him? He turned around and looked in the direction the statue was pointing to. He saw a wooden circle door on the floor of the main hall that they missed upon entering.

"This way". He said as he ran towards the door. Unlike the rest of the ruins, the door had barely any dirt on it. Not much dust around it either. Jaune placed his head on it and the sound of the chanty became clearer. "This has to be it, Don".

Don inspected the door and realized how to open it, he grabbed a rope ball that was in a socket on the door and pulled it, the rope extended and allowed him to get the door open. Once it was, the sound of chanties blasted from the hole, the two huntsmen saw a spiral staircase going deep underground and banishing in the darkness.

"Sure you want to do this, kid?".

"No…But there is no going back now".

The two of them stepped down the abyss with nothing to guide them but the sound of the witches' chant becoming louder. The staircase was long and dark, they both almost fell off a couple of times, but eventually they managed to reach the end and a faint flaming light coming from under a door lead them to their destination. They carefully entered the door and fund a massive underground hall. They were standing on a balcony upper level and bellow them, there was a ceremonial hall with an altar and another statue of the God of Darkness, this one had his hand presenting a book placed open on its palm. The Witches' Coven was singing a harmonious yet eerie melody as they stood in front of the altar. The scene made Jaune and Don even more creeped out.

Soon enough a robed woman stepped into the altar as the song faded and eventually ended. The woman took her hood off, revealing herself Mother Emilia, the headmistress of the Cathedral of Saint Agnes.

"My dear sisters. I welcome you all to tonight's ceremony. On this moon light night, we present our lord with the precious memories of our dear departed. Sister Carmen, please present the tributes gathered in your team's harvest" Mother Emilia instructed.

The four Witches Jaune and Don saw entering the temple stepped on the altar carrying baskets. In them, many items were placed alongside some flowers. Toys, pictures, pieces of clothing, Jaune immediately realized these were the things the witches had on their bags earlier, and Don noted how they must the stolen personal items the witches were accused of taking.

The baskets were placed around the statue and once the sisters left the altar, Mother Emilia approached it, she bowed before the God of Darkness and carefully took the book from the statue's hand. She walked away from the statue and towards her speech stand. She opened the book and extend her arms, reading from it her preach.

"Oh lord of Darkness. Herald of death. We present you on this your night tokens of the lost souls that wonder this land. The last remnants of their legacy, of their memories, of the love their families had for them. We, your loyal servants, implore you to search for these lost souls and guide them on their journey to the afterlife"

" _We, the devote daughters of Saint Aradia, have sown this harvest in your name. May it aid you in your eternal quest"._

"Oh, bringer of death, guardian of the departed, we beg for your kindness towards these innocent souls".

" _May your shadows protect them from the void and guide them towards your brother's light"._

The Witches approached the altar and with a swift motion, they used their fire dust to ignite the baskets, burning the items within them. The flames illuminated the statue, making the shadow behind it grow larger and imponent.

"Your word is will. Your shadows are a shield. And we your followers are vessels of them".

" _Our lifes belong to the words of the Book of Shadows and our spirits will always belong to your eternal embrace"._

"And so, it is written in our sacred texts".

" _And spoken by our devoted voices"._

Mother Emilia closed the book, signaling the end of the ceremony. She carefully walked past the flaming baskets to return the sacred text to the hand of their God. She then went back to her stand to address her sisters.

A group of witches stepped to the altar next to Mother Emilia. Don noted that those looked like the witches responsible for the ambush, and among them, Jaune recognized the red fox tail of their leader.

"Sisters. Tonight, we took a big step for the future of Sevillana. Thanks to the efforts of Sister Victoria and her squad, we have delivered our ultimatum to the heretic Major Cornsilk and the ignorant and passive masses that either support him… or standby in compliance".

The witches applauded.

"The next 24hrs are crucial now. We must be ready for the people's choice. Either they rise up and free themselves from their chains. Or remain passive and face the consequences".

"Consequences?" Jaune whispered.

"Yeah, they said something about the souls of the dead destroying the city". Don replied.

"What?!".

"Ssshhhhh. They'll hear you!" Don said, right before hearing steps coming on their direction.

Mother Emilia continued, "Rest my dear sisters, for tomorrow our fate will be decided, and the souls of the departed will get their peace and justice!".

The witches applauded and after a short bit, they were all dismissed.

"Where do we hide!?" Don asked, panicking as two witches walked on their direction.

Jaune looked around and quickly signaled Don to walk fast towards a dark tunnel and away from the witches. The two huntsmen were quick and silent but as they approached the tunnel, a cloaked shadow stood up in front of Jaune, startling him. The shadow quickly covered his mouth and pushed the boy and his master through a wooden door, shutting it close behind them before the other witches noticed the intruders.

Jaune and Don fell to the floor, accelerated for having been discovered, but soon Jaune was shocked when he saw the face of the witch that aid them.

"Why, why, why are you here?! I told you not to get involved!" Violet reproached him.

"Violet! It's so good to see you! Are you alright?".

"No, I'm not alright! You shouldn't be here! How did you even find this place? and…Why did you bring an old man?!". Violet freaked out in anger.

Don dusted off himself before addressing the less than eager sister in front of him," Wow, she is a feisty one, I see why you like her so much, lad. Dominique Cervantes, my lady. I'm Jaune's mentor. Pleasure to meet you".

"So, another huntsman!? Oh, this can't be happening, no, no, no!" Violet continued rambling, mad and confused. She was extremely worried. If the other witches found them, they would all be in serious trouble. "Please leave! I'm not asking again!".

Jaune looked at her in the eyes, his expression was serious, he was not backing down. "I am not leaving without answers, Violet".

Violet calmed down a little, still extremely upset though, "Why are you so stubborn?!" she said while clenching her fists in frustration.

"Because there are people I want to help" Jaune answered, much to Violet's surprise.

She took a deep breath to calm her nerves, looking at her side with a bit of shame, "What do you want to know?".

"Let's start with the beginning. What is this place?".

Violet walked slowly to the back of the room, she stood in front of a tapestry depicting two women, one giving flowers to people during the day, and another putting flowers on the ground during the night.

She then started to tell the tale. "Many years before the Great War, Sevillana was a small city with a devoted following to the Faith of the Two Brothers. Among the followers, two twin sisters rose to prominence, they were loved for their kindness to the town folk, through their devotion they became co-leaders of the congregation and eventually they were granted the title of saints. Saint Agnes was a devote of the God of Light, she showed her kindness by helping the people ease the pain of their life, she was a healer and a teacher. Saint Aradia was a devote of the God of Darkness, she was well loved for her care of the decease, she helped people cope with their losses, her followers use to tend for the graveyard and she developed rituals to help the spirits of the dead find peace".

"But something happened" Don added. "The Cathedral of Saint Agnes is famous now…But this place…".

Violet continued, "Yes. This is the Temple of Saint Aradia. The tensions prior to the Great War brought confusion amongst the people. Suddenly, followers of the God of Darkness were being accused of causing the rise in power of Grimm, and Saint Aradia herself was accused of witchcraft for her rituals. The citizens of Sevillana, in their fear and anger, hunted down all followers of the Dark Brother, and Saint Aradia was burned at the stake…right in front of her sister. The city became devoted exclusively to the God of Light…But Saint Agnes left them behind, she couldn't cope with the loss of her beloved sister…and banished never to be heard from again".

Jaune was in awe at this tragic tale. "The sisters are devoted to the God of Light…But you were never taught to hate the God of Darkness".

"Our faith is the faith of the Two Brothers, not just one. We had to follow a tradition because the city wanted us to. But when we saw how much the dead were being disrespected…We had to do something; our belief was compelling us to. Even if that meant stealing people's mementos of their loved ones. We had to help but they weren't going to let us!".

Jaune kept thinking about all the information they had, "So, the ritual. You are not stealing things to send Grimm after people?".

"What? No! The ritual is to help dead souls find their way to the afterlife. It is our belief that the God of Darkness protects souls and helps them reach eternity while The God of Light safeguards the passing souls in the afterlife".

Don was intrigued, this tale was fascinating to him but there were still things that didn't add up. "Wait, then what about the Grimm? They attack people after you show up. And that threat you gave today? The whole, _give us the major or the_ _souls of the dead_ _will consume the city_? What's up with that?!"

"What? Give us the major? No…I…We just wanted to scare the major away, that was the plan! We don't want to hurt anyone! Victoria was supposed to deliver the speech…She wouldn't have said that!". Violet replied, getting even more scared at these accusations.

"That's what she said, I was there. And if she meant that, who is to say she didn't mean the second part too?" Don added.

"No. No!…Why would she?".

"Because those were Mother Emilia's orders" A voice came from behind Jaune and Don. In front of the door, Victoria stood with an angry expression as she stared directly at Jaune, beside her, two of her fellow witches pointed their staves at the two huntsmen. "I thought I told you to leave" She said to Jaune.

"Victoria! I was just….".

"Putting yourself and the mission in danger for this pretty boy? After the stupid stunt you pulled today, I'm not surprised at all".

"Victo…"

"SHUT UP! I'm trying to keep you safe, why do you always have to make it so difficult?!".

Don tried to take advantage of this sisters' quarrel. He tried to pull out his sword but one of the witches put her flaming stave right in front of her face.

"Don't even think about it, old man".

Jaune immediately intervened "Victoria, just think of what you are doing. The city. Hundreds of people could…".

Victoria scoffed at Jaune "Spare me the sermon, huntsman. As if you gave a damn about the city. We know the major called you here to exterminate us. You are just as much of a brute dog as the guards themselves".

"We are here to help!"

"By hunting us all? Gee what a hero".

"Don't put words in my mouth!".

"Then shut it! Listen up, both of you!" Victoria said as she walked closer to the two huntsmen. "This city is our home and its citizen are my family. I will do ANYTHING to protect my family. If that means going through the guards, the major or even you, so be it".

"Victoria!" Violet yelled as she ran to her sister and stood between her and Jaune, "They have nothing to do with this!".

"I think they are pretty involved already".

Jaune couldn't keep quite anymore, he still wanted answers, "You want to protect Violet and the city? Then why are you doing this?! Why do you want to kill the major?! What are you planning to do with the city if they don't comply?!".

Victoria pushed Violet aside and walked to put her face close to Jaune's. "I do not question Mother Emilia's judgment. I want to save the city from that tyrant. I'm sure they'll make the right choice".

"What should we do with them?" One of the witches asked.

Violet desperately pleaded to her sister, "Victoria please! Just let them go!".

"I told you to shut up! Why did you have to bring them here?!" Victoria asked in frustration.

"Let them go…I owe it to him".

"Huh! For caring some potatoes?!".

"For saving my life!" Violet firmly declared, much to Victoria's surprise. Violet stepped closer to her sister and looked her in the eyes with a serious yet scared expression of plead. She grabbed her sister's hands before continuing "You saw it. If it wasn't for him the bricks would have killed me. Please…Just let them go".

Victoria clenched her teeth, frustrated and conflicted. "I swear you do this on purpose to make me mad, Violet". She then took a deep breath, which Violet answered with a soft smile.

Victoria took a small brown leather bag from under her robe and walked towards Jaune and Don. "Jaune, was it? I should have you two handed over to Mother Emilia herself…But, if I do, Violet would be in trouble too. I can't let that happen". She poured a strange white powder from the bag into her hand. "You saved Violet's life…I do thank you for that. So, I'll give you one last chance" She tossed the bag on the floor. "Walk away from this…and never come back" She said before blowing the white powder on Jaune's face and then proceeding to do the same to Don.

Jaune and Don started coughing and almost immediately fell to the ground. Their minds started to fade in and out of consciousness until quickly everything went dark.

From behind the door, a person watching the whole thing ran away as fast as he could, rushing through the staircase, he managed to make it out of the temple undetected and soon enough managed to reach the woods.

"Please…Don't make me go in there again…That place gives me the creeps!" Sky said, terrified of the witches' hide out.

Cardin stepped out from the shadows. "Did you get the pictures?".

Sky smiled and showed his scroll "Pictures, videos, it's all here".

Cardin's serious expression turned to a mad grin when he saw pictures of Jaune and the witches…together. "Good job, Jauny. Maybe you aren't that useless after all".

* * *

"Ja…Jaun….Jaune….JAUNE!"

"AHH!" Jaune woke up startled, his eyes being hit by the midday light. He was laying on the dirt right at the edge of the forest and the city. His head was killing him and he was disorientated.

"Wake up, lad! We have a situation!" Don said, he was kneeled next to his apprentice and handed him a bottle of water.

Jaune quickly drank from it before continuing "Arg. Why do we always wake up like this!? Where are we now?".

"There is no time! Stand up! We need to hurry!".

Don pulled Jaune across the city, they ran as fast as they could. Jaune had no idea where his mentor was taking him…But as they got closer, he started to realize the gravity of the matter. Many buildings were destroyed, craters on the streets still smoking. Firefighters were doing their best to extinguish the flames while ambulances and many volunteers gave aid to the many injured…and the guards took care of some bodies.

"No…" Jaune said in shock. "No, no, no!" he yelled in anger and frustration as he grabbed his face enraged and confused.

The sound of a nearby growl caught their attention. A cloud of black smoke coming out from behind a corner. Jaune ran as fast as he could towards it and Don followed soon after. When they finally reached the street, Dove, Sky and Russel were standing there, weapons in hand and the dusting corpse of a Grimm laying on the floor.

"Oh, hey! Look who finally decided to show up!" Russel said, trying to taunt Jaune.

"Wha…what happened here? What are you guys doing?". Jaune asked, he knew exactly what happened but a part of him refused to believe it.

"Well isn't obvious? We are doing our job. The Grimm came at dawn. It took us all morning to deal with them" Russel responded with a mocking and arrogant expression. "How about you? Oh, let me guess, hiding like a little sissy?".

"Oh, for the love of, are we really going to waste time in stupid insults?!" Don replied, upset at the childish behavior of this punks.

Team CRDL just chuckled a bit and with an arrogant look started to walk pass the two of them "Yeah, you are right. We don't have time to waste. Come on guys, the city is waiting for its real heroes" Russel replied.

As team walked away, Jaune and Don stood there in frustration, partly with these bullies but mostly with themselves. Neither could help but blame themselves for this tragedy, they were doing what they could…and still.

Team CRDL didn't walk too far when Dove turned his head a little to catch a view of Jaune behind him. He then turned to his teammates, "Uh, guys? I'll catch you up in a bit, I saw a bakery and kind of want to get lunch, hehe".

"Why do you always think with your stomach, dude?". Sky replied. "Ok, hurry up, you know how Cardin gets when we are late".

"Yeah, I know. It'll take just a minute" He answered. Russel and Sky shrugged it off and just kept on their way. After they got far enough Dove's fake innocent smile changed to a serious expression as he turned around and ran.

"What should we do know?" Jaune asked.

"We have to speak with the major" Don replied.

"And tell him what? I don't trust him, Don, and even if I did, we don't know if the witches did this or not. Violet doesn't believe so but you heard Victoria, we don't know what Mother Emilia…" Jaune continued, but he soon stopped at the sight of Dove running towards him.

"Jaune!" Dove said, stopping for a bit to recover his breath.

"Dove? What do wa…" He started saying but Dove quickly interrupted him.

"Just listed, I don't have much time!" He said, much to Jaune and Don's surprise. He took a deep breath before continuing. "Jaune, you have to leave the city! Now!".

"What? Look if you came here to threaten us…".

"YOU ARE NOT LISTENING!" Dove yelled. Jaune and Don were taken by surprise by this. His expression, Dove didn't have a malicious vibe, he sounded scared. "Cardin… He is not ok; I'm worry about him! He hasn't been fine for almost a year now. Ever since the Fall". He looked at Jaune, his eyes showed worry, the mere mention of the Fall was enough to give shivers to Jaune…to anyone that experienced it really. "We spent months fighting the Grimm at Vale. And when people started leaving, he got pissed. He has been dragging us through Anima ever since. Jaune, he is after you, you have to go, you don't know what he is capable of".

"I…I can't do that".

Dove pressed on, "He is not going to stop!".

"I can't just abandon this people!" Jaune said, startling Dove. Don looked at his student with a faint smile on his face.

Dove let out a sigh. "Then don't say I didn't warn you", he started to walk away but stopped in his tracks. He turned once more and faced the two huntsmen, "You two should at least beware of the Major. Just trust me on that", he said before quickly running away.

"The Major…" Jaune wondered what Dove meant. As if his distrust of him wasn't big enough, now he pretty much had confirmation, they had to be cautious.

Don let out a sigh and scratched his head, "Well, guess you were on point, kid. If he is telling the truth, we better not get near City Hall".

"No" Jaune replied, much to Don's confusion, "You were right. We have to talk to the Major". He declared. Don could tell by Jaune's expression that his young apprentice was already working on plan, and he loved when he had that look on his face.

* * *

Security at City Hall was reinforced, the Witches' appearance, the Grimm attack and a large number of protestors surrounding the place had every guard on high alert. Riots started to spawn across the city due to the Grimm attack, many calling for the Major to handover himself, others protesting for the guards inefficient in protecting them from the witches.

The building suffered some damage from the Grimm, nothing too significant but enough to require heavy construction equipment. City Hall was surrounded by guards and cranes the construction crew left unattended to go on lunch break.

Jaune and Don were led in by security and escorted to the Major's office in the second floor. Something didn't feel right. The security ring was well organized but if what Dove said was true, then why would the Major let them in so easily? Was he lying? Or should they trust Dove even though they had no reason to?

They stood right in front of two big wooden doors and the guards stationed there opened it for them. The office was a big square room, it had bookcases extending across the entire left wall and windows covering the right wall all the way to the back of the room where the Major's desk was.

The Major had a serious expression, he was extremely focused on some papers he was signing, all the while Cardin stood with his back against the bookcase and his arms crossed, he smiled with a sarcastic attitude at the sight of Jaune walking in, it was as if he was waiting for him to show up.

"Major Cornsilk…." Don said trying to get the Major's attention. "It's time we have that serious talk I mentioned last night".

"Yes, indeed" The Major replied with a serious tone, not lifting his head and just finishing to sign his papers.

Jaune and Don shared a look of confusion and suspicion. Don decided to continue, "We spent all night looking for the witches and found out what they are doing with the stolen objects. We believe they may have nothing to do with the attack".

The Major put the quill back in the ink jar before grabbing his hands and resting his head on them, "You know. When I decided to run for major, I had people asking me if I was doing it for the money. They asked if it was for business or fame…and I always said no. I always said, all I wanted was to protect my home, this city, I want it to be a place in which everyone could be happy to live in, those are the riches I'm looking for". The Major stood up and faced the window behind him with his hands in the back, "I've worked day and night towards that goal. People don't like my decisions? I don't care. They think I'm being mean? I don't care. I know I´m right, I know that what I'm doing is what must be done to PREVENT THIS FROM HAPPENING!".

The Major turned around with nothing but fury in his eyes. "I never should have listened to you! If we had rounded up the faunus we would have found them earlier! We could have prevented deaths!".

"The faunus have nothing to do with this! Listen to us, we spoke with the witches and…" Jaune tried to explain, but the Major was reluctant to hear what he had to say.

"Oh really? You heard that, Cardin?" The Major asked sarcastically with a mocking laugh.

"Yes, I did, Major. It sounded like a confession to me". Cardin replied, he then put his scroll on a socket in the Major's desk, connecting it to a holographic projector. The images showed Don and Jaune entering the witches' temple, it showed them watching the ritual and it showed them speaking with the witches, it even clearly showed Violet and Victoria's faces as well as Victoria's distinctive tail.

Don walked carefully towards the right wall and calmly opened a window, letting fresh air come inside the office.

Jaune was in shock, "You…You followed us!" he said incredulous.

"I was doing my duty. But let's not talk about me, why don't we talk about you? Huh? Traitor?" Cardin replied, taunting Jaune.

The Major addressed Jaune in anger, "You two were in conspiracy with them all along. You gave us the wrong direction on purpose! You told us not to round up the faunus! All tricks to protect those sisters!".

"Sis…sisters?" Jaune's eyes got wide opened with the realization.

Cardin played a recording of Jaune saying " _The sisters are devoted to the God of Light…But you were never taught to hate the God of Darkness_ ". He then chuckled at Jaune's expression of regret, shock and fear, "Isn't it sad? How even the holiest and purest people are as rotten as the rest of us?".

This was bad, Cardin and the Major were more in the know than they were expecting. If they knew the sisters were the witches, how far would they be willing to go?

"Listen, we can talk to them, no one has to get hurt!" Jaune tried to reason, but Cardin and the Major were one step ahead of him.

"It's a little too late for that, pal" Cardin said.

The Major continued, "The guards already raided the Cathedral and arrested all the sisters they could find. Some got away, and we are still looking for their headmistress".

Jaune got chills, but he had to press on, there was something he needed to get out of this conversation and he was determined to get it "It's over then. You arrested them. You saved the city, there is no need to take this further. Or…Is there something else you want?" Jaune asked trying to lead the conversation in the direction he wanted.

The Major laughed while walking towards Jaune, "Oh, kid, it's not over yet". He stood right in front of him, "I want the Book" he said.

"The Book?".

"Oh yes, I know about it. I'm sure, that book is the source of their dark powers and I won't rest until it is nothing but ash".

The Major walked back to his desk. "I'm a reasonable man. I will not execute the Witches we captured just yet. Nah. First, I'm going to hunt every single one of them, then I'll burn their dark magic book and their headmistress at the stake, and ONLY THEN will I execute them, after everything they held dear is gone. THAT'S the justice they deserve!".

"YOU ARE KILLING DOZENS OF PEOPLE!"

"THEY ARE GOING TO KILL HUNDREDS!". The Major replied, angry. His breath was accelerated.

Cardin walked over to Jaune. "You never were the smartest guy at Beacon, but come on Jaune, don't pick the wrong the side".

Jaune saw him with mad eyes, "And which is the right side then?! This one?! The one that wants to slaughter people out of fear?!".

"If it gets results, so be it! THEY DESERVE IT for what they did to this city and to her!" Cardin said in anger.

"…Her?" Jaune was shocked and confused by this answer, what did he mean?

The Major stepped in once more, "Don't waste your time with traitors and cowards, Cardin" he said before pressing a bottom on his desk.

Jaune looked at the Major with anger in his eyes. "Cowards?! Says the man hiding in his office while we spent all night trying to solve this! The only coward I see is you! You are so afraid of the witches you'll pay anyone to kill them whether they are innocent or not! No wonder the people outside hates you. No one will respect a leader so afraid it wouldn't even deal with his issues himself!".

"THAT'S ENOUGH!" The major yelled in anger. "I will not hear another word coming from your mouth. If you won't fight for our city, I'll treat you just like I'll treat the witches. You are my enemy and I will NOT show mercy, was I clear, boy?!".

Don smiled as he looked through the window, "You know you are wrong, don't you?".

"Oh, so you aren´t our enemies?".

"No, I guess we are now. But I wasn't talking to you" Don said before turning around and staring at Cardin, he then pointed with his head at Jaune "That kid? He is smarter than you give him credit for…after all…Now we know your target".

Cardin's face showed shock as he realized Jaune's true goal. He was trying to figure out their objective. In a single conversation, Jaune managed to get an edge over them, knowledge of their next move.

The room was soon filled with guards and the rest of team CRDL accompanied them. They quickly surrounded Jaune and Don.

"Guards! Arrest the traitors!".

Jaune and Don stood next to each other with their backs towards the windows, the guards pointed their rifles at them. CDRL had big smiles at seeing Jaune in this situation, all except Dove who was giving a look to him as if he was saying "I told you so".

Don and Jaune had their hands raised and their faces had a worried expression. But to the Major and CRDL's surprise…. that expression was soon replaced with big smiles.

"Oh! What cruel fate! What unfortunate turn of events!" Don started saying with an overly dramatic tone

"Master! What are we going to do now? Is this really the end of the road?" Jaune continued with an equally dramatic expression as he put his backhand against his forehead.

"I'm afraid so, my dear squire. The old Johnny Law has caught up to us! I'm sorry my boy, I've failed you". Don said as he padded Jaune in the back and then covered his fake tears with his writs.

The guards started to exchange looks weirded out at what they were seeing.

"OH, CRUEL DESTINY! I was but a boy, innocent and pure! It was all those video games and the internet! All that violence and indecency corrupted MY MIND!" Jaune continued, grabbing a guard's shoulders and shaking him repeatedly.

Some guards started to put down their guns, they were really confused.

"Fear not, my boy. If we must leave this world, we'll do it in our own terms!".

"You don't mean?".

"Yes, lad. Come with me. Let us leap to our ultimate demise".

"Goodbye cruel world! Please remember me for who I once was!" Jaune said before the two ran quickly and jumped out the window Don had opened earlier.

"NO! WAIT!" The guards tried to stop them, but they were too late. They rushed towards the window expecting to see the bodies of the young man and his master…needless to say they were surprised at the sight of the two fugitives bowing to them from outside the window.

Jaune and Don jumped to a platform held by a construction crane. Thanks to Dove's warning, Jaune realized they needed an escape plan just in case, so when they saw the cranes were left unattended, they set one up outside the Major's window as a precaution. They rigged the crane so that it would move away from the window when they jumped through inertia, swinging them in an arc to the building next to City Hall.

"Thank you, thank you!". They said mockingly as they bowed after their spectacular performance.

"GODDAMNIT!" Cardin yelled as he punched the frame of the window in anger.

"SO LONG! SUCKERS! HAHAH! YOU ARE NO MATCH FOR OUR CUNNING…AHHH!" Don tried to say but was cut off by the guards shooting at them.

The initial shots missed them and Don quickly pulled out his shield to block the following ones, but as they kept moving to try to evade the gun fire, the platform started to move from left to right uncontrollably making it unstable, to make matters worst, the inertia they thought would take them to freedom was too weak to make the crane move too far.

"CAN'T THIS THING GO FASTER?!" Don yelled as bullets kept hitting his shield.

"ON IT!" Jaune said before grabbing Don's sword and quickly slicing 3 of the 4 wires holding the platform, making it collapse. As they fell, Jaune managed to get a hold of a cut wire and Don grabbed Jaune's leg. The momentum made them swing away from the City Hall, flying over the protestors who saw their escape in awe while the two of them yelled in panic "AAAAAAAAHHHHHH!".

Jaune and Don landed on a tree in the main plaza and breaking some branches they fell painfully but safely on the floor.

"Perfect…Landing" Don said with his face pasted on the ground.

"GUARDS! ARREST THEM!". The Major yelled. The guards followed his instructions but the crowd of protestors became a road block that slowed them down, allowing Jaune and Don to escape in the commotion.

"ARGH! FIND THEM! DON'T LET THEM GET AWAY!" The Major yelling in frustration, "CARDIN!". Cardin rushed to him, "I want you and your team ready for the assault just as planned, I'll double your troops!".

"He knows we are after the book, if he goes to them, they could move it. How long until the troops are ready!?".

A chief guard approached the two, "Sir! The Grimm attack left more injured than expected. The riots are getting worst and they are cutting our supply lines!".

"GIVE ME A TIME FRAME!".

"If we deal with the riots, we might be able to give you 30 men by sunset, reinforcements could go later".

"That's less than what I was promised!". Cardin reproached.

"I'm sorry, Sir, but all my guards are trying to bring the city back under control. Rioters are becoming more aggressive by the minute".

"Are they?... I see…" The Major started to think. The people of Sevillana were divided on their opinion of him, he was well aware of that…but, there was one thing that could unite them and if he was going to win this war, he needed them on his side. There was something Cardin said the night before, something that he saw the crowd was fully on board with, something that could give him strength, and even if he didn't want to admit it, Jaune also said something that stuck with him. It was time for the city to have a leader. "Very well. Cardin, you heard the Captain. Get ready by sunset, the guards will supply you with as much dust as you can hold".

"You can't be serious!".

"Do as I say! I have to go now. The public needs to hear their Major's words". The Major left, ready to address the people, and leaving a frustrated and impatient Cardin behind.

* * *

The City of Sevillana was in chaos, rioters were in almost every corner and guards were deployed on every street. Running through the crowds and avoiding the guards was a difficult task but Jaune and Don managed to run as fast as they could and avoid being caught.

After their successful escape, they managed to hide momentarily in an alleyway to catch their breath.

"I can't believe that worked!" Jaune celebrated with a big smile, the adrenaline flowing through his body made him jump of happiness.

"Marvelous plan, my boy! Spectacular escape! I'm so glad you didn't ask me to use my semblance!" Don replied.

Jaune's happiness froze for a second and his big smile slowly became…. a frustrated frown.

"I mean, it would have been way easier, and probably safer as well. But I love your spirit, lad!". Don continued before realizing his student had his head against a wall, "What's wro….Oh…you forgot didn't you?".

"You. Just. Couldn't. Let me. Have. This!" Jaune kept saying while punching the wall in anger.

Their attention was quickly caught by the sound of guards running by which prompted them to hide behind some trash cans.

Once they passed by, Jaune walked to the end of the alley and picked his head to make sure the coast was clear.

"Making it to the forest is going to be hard. How are we going to cross the city without being seen?!" Jaune asked, his attention was caught by Don's immediate response.

"Way ahead of you, my boy" He said with a big smile while holding two old lady dresses he stole from a drying clothe line.

"…No!".

"Oh, come on! You said you wore dresses before! Plus, I already put on the grandma underwear and it's surprisingly comfy".

"But why did you…How…. _Sigh_. Just give me the dress…".

As guards ran back and forth on the street, Jaune and Don walked out of the alleyway slowly, dressed on pink and white dresses and wearing big cloth hats that helped hide their faces. From the trash, Don even got a fan to cover his beard with and a big old straw bag to carry his shield around.

Armed with their inconspicuous disguises, the two heroes traveled around town avoiding as many guards as they could. It was difficult though. Many streets were completely blocked off either by riot control or by the rioters themselves. They opted for traveling through alleyways to avoid detection, but many guard outposts thought of that as well and started to patrol them.

They walked trying to find an actual path for over an hour in relative safety until they were forced to hide from a group or rioters walking by. Curiously enough, another rioter came in running towards the group.

"Guys! They say the Major is gonna give a speech!".

"He better give himself up!".

"They say he wants to fight the witches himself!".

"The witches!? I gotta see this! Haha!".

The rioters ran off to the Major's speech, much to Jaune and Don relief, but also wonder.

"What is he planning now?" Jaune pondered, before realizing where he was standing. The flowers on the building they were hiding next to made him notice this was the house of the old lady that he helped with Violet the day before. He couldn't stop thinking about the sisters, about the Major, about the city as a whole. The Major told them what he did and what he wanted to do to the sisters. Doubt and guilt plagued Jaune's mind. If the Major was right, then he was actually saving the city, but if he was wrong, there would be nothing but senseless pain and suffering. Either way many would die and Jaune feared that at least the blood of the sisters might be in his hands as well.

"Don, I want to make a short stop. Follow me". Jaune said.

"Where are we going?". Don asked but his student had already stepped out to the street.

The closer they walked to the place Jaune had in mind the more guards they encountered and the more careful they had to be. With all streets closed, they navigated the maze of alleyways as quickly as they could and as silently as possible to avoid detection.

"Kid, this isn't a good idea!" Don tried to argue, he didn't know where his student was taking him, but for it to have so much security meant it was a risk.

They eventually managed to go through the guard's blockade by finding an alleyway path that was missed by their security. Walking to the end of the alleyway, Jaune and Don could clearly see an open garden plaza and in the middle, it stood what Jaune was trying to see, the Cathedral of Saint Agnes.

It was ravaged, broken windows and doors. The ancient Cathedral that stood generations had been assaulted by the guard's forces. The once beautiful building was now hurt, it was covered in wounds and its devoted sisters were now gone.

"It was true…They raided it" Jaune said to himself, he didn't want to believe it, he didn't want to believe a simple comment from him had caused so much pain, "It was my fault".

Don put his hand on Jaune's shoulder "You won't be saving anyone by standing here blaming yourself".

"Then how am I supposed to do it?...and Who am I supposed to safe?" Jaune asked much to Don's surprise. Jaune's heart was split. He noticed how the Cathedral had both bullet and dust damage. The witched fought back. He was turned, did the guards do the right thing or were the witches truly innocent? Who was he supposed to side with? "Don…I don't know who is right and who is wrong. And I don't want my choice to cause more deaths!… it scares me".

"Jaune…" Don tried to talk to his apprentice, but was soon interrupted by two approaching guards.

"Ladies. We must ask you to go back to your home; this is a restricted area".

Don covered his face with his fan before talking with a high pitch voice, "Oh! Thank you, young and handsome man! Me and my little sister here were just going to buy medicine for her cough" He said before pocking Jaune with his elbow.

Jaune let out a fake cough, covering his mouth with his hand, " _Cough, cough_ ".

"See? There is nothing to worry, sir, I'll take care of her".

The guards weren't buying it that much. "There are no pharmacies open, ma'am. I'm afraid you are going to have to come with us".

Don continued his act "Oh, no, no, no. We really don't want any trouble".

"Check for weapons, they might be witches". The guard instructed his partner.

The second guard started to pat Don checking for any suspicious item. "Oh, this is so embarrassing, but I can assure you that you won't find HEY!" Don yelled with a manly voice as he punched the guard in the face for getting a bit too handsy with his butt. "THERE ARE NO GENTLEMEN ANYMORE!".

"THE FUGITIVES!".

"RUN, DON!" Jaune yelled as he pushed the guard to the ground and the two ran back into the alleyway.

The guard immediately reported the sight and called for backup before lifting his partner and running after the fugitives.

Jaune and Don ran as fast as they could, but the dresses weren't helping at all, they had to lift them to be able to run properly. The two guards started to catch up quickly. Jaune was about to turn to another alleyway but another group of guards were running from that direction. Don pulled his student by the collar and dragged him to a third path.

They managed to reach the street but lost their cloth hats in the process. Another group of guards joined the chase as Jaune and Don ran in the middle of the street desperately.

Gun shots started to be fired which prompted them to make a sharp turn to the left into another alleyway for cover, giving Don a bit of time to throw away the straw bag and put his shield on his back. They kept running, struggling with the dresses. Don saw how another group of guards came from the end of the alleyway and with a quick turn of his head realized they were surrounded. Thinking quickly, Jaune tackled a door open and the two of them ran through a building. A scared family took cover as Jaune and Don ran across their kitchen to their living room knocking things down in their panic.

They managed to break the front door open and soon enough they were in the main street again. Their relief didn't last when gun shots came from their right and they had to resume their escape right before the guards from the alleyway came out of the building.

The chase continued as Jaune and Don ran straight to a crowd of rioters.

"The guards are oppressors! Down with the Major and the Witches!". They yelled to get the rioters to react and cheer. When the rioters saw the approaching guards, they immediately confronted them, giving Jaune and Don a brief chance to escape into another alleyway.

They kept on running and took another sharp turn to the right, taking a small break to get rid of the dresses. They ripped them apart and threw them in a trash can before stealing a trench coat and a poncho.

They ran back to the street until they saw a restaurant with a balcony view of the city and decided to hide as costumers. The place was closed due to the riots, but luckily, they left some menus on a table that the two fugitives quickly used to hide their faces as they grabbed a sit. They let out a massive sigh of relief with the guards ran past them.

"Oh, thank the gods. That was a close one".

"You had to blow it, didn't you?!".

"Hey! I'm a classy lady and won't take disrespect!". Don tried to defend himself before the two of them were forced to hide behind the menus again when another group of guards ran pass them.

They put the menus down in relief once more which made Don chuckle a little. "Haha. What an exciting day. Come on kid, the sooner we make it to the forest the better".

"Don…should we really?" Jaune asked, he couldn't even see his master in the eyes when he said that.

"What do you mean? Of course, we should!".

"You don't understand". Jaune tried to replied but his master was reluctant to let him give up.

"You can't be thinking of actually staying out of this. What happened with not abandoning this people?!".

"I WON'T!" Jaune answered, his eyes locked in defiance to his mentor. "I can't abandon them but I told you, I don't know whose side is the right side!" He said.

Jaune grabbed his head in frustration and shortly after slammed his arms against the table. "Siding with the Major will mean the Witches will be slaughtered. Violet…I can't let them do that to her, to any of the sisters…But". He grabbed his hands and pressed them tightly, "Siding with the Coven might mean the Grimm will destroy the city. So many have died already and I don't know if they did it or not".

"Kid…" Don wanted to step in, but he also knew it was important for his student to let everything out of his chest.

"The Major might be saving the city, or he might be killing innocent people. Or what if the witches are the ones saving the city and this was just a misunderstanding? Then who is sending the Grimm? Who caused this?!".

"Jaune, calm down" Don tried to plead but Jaune didn't listen.

"Don, I don't know who is right and who is wrong. I don't know who brought the Grimm in the first place. I don't know who the good guys and the bad guys are!...How am I supposed to tell?!". Jaune finished, he was breathing hard and fast out of sheer frustrated.

Don took a look at his apprentice, he saw how split he was, how his heart was in the right place, but also how much fear he had of making a mistake he would regret the rest of his life. After a short pause, Don took a deep breath and started to talk.

"You can't really tell for sure, kid. But I mean, such is life after all". Don said with a faint smile and sad eyes.

Jaune turned at him and listened carefully as Don continued, "Kid, when Violet told us the history of the God of Darkness, it got me thinking. What kind of person you think he is?".

"What?".

"Come on, you are the god guy. What do you think? Is The god of destruction itself a benevolent guy? Does he really protect the souls of the dead?".

Jaune was a bit confused, but he gave it a quick thought, "I…Don't know. I didn't see him myself. It might just be their belief and nothing else…But…Ruby said he granted Salem's desire without question".

"And why was that?".

Jaune kept thinking before replying "She said that…He was grateful that for once someone didn't hate him and actually wordship him…He even was willing to protect her from his brother himself…But then, when it turned out she tricked him, he took responsibility for his mistake".

Don replied with a chuckle, "Well there you go".

"I don't follow".

Don gave a warm smile to his student, "Jaune, there are no absolute good or bad guys. If the Gods themselves aren't black and white, why should life be? It isn't".

Jaune started to consider these words and his nerves calmed down a little.

Don continued, "The problem really comes when people think and live in extremes. That's when you start repeating that you are right and everyone that says otherwise is wrong. That's when you start to think that those that disagree even slightly with your views are automatically monsters, ignorants and your enemies. You become deft to their words; you start to act against them even if it also hurts you just to be a contrarian. When you see the world in extremes you eventually start to automatically assume the worst in people, you don't see them as people anymore but as walking opposing opinions…It's sad really, how some much rather be right than happy".

Jaune started to reflect on this. It was true, the Major and the Witches, they weren't willing to hear each other out, they didn't care for the other's opinion, their views were absolute and whoever thought otherwise was their enemy. They were being stubborn and no one could tell how far they would go to prove they were right…But that still left a question…Were the Witches really so fixed on proving the Major wrong that they would send a Grimm army to kill innocent people?…Or was there another explanation?

Don stood up and walked behind Jaune, he then covered his eyes with his hands, "Jaune, you don't have to choose a side, follow what you feel is right but always keep others in consideration, even those who disagree with you. Never assume the worst on them and most importantly, don't see the world in extremes. When you travel covered in absolute darkness, you won't be able to see the path, but…" Don said, he then took his hands off Jaune's eyes, the evening light of the sun hurt them, and as it did, Don continued, "When you try to walk in absolute light, it will blind you as well".

Jaune's eyes quickly adjusted to the light as Don finished his words "Only when you live in balance, your eyes will clearly see the road ahead, that is how life works".

Jaune's vision focused, he blinked a couple of times until he managed to see clearly the scenery of the beautiful city of Sevillana, a city of wonders that was in need of help. In the distance, Jaune saw a familiar sight, it was the empty terrain he saw the day before, the removed ground he first thought was a new construction side…He now could see it clearly and just like that, all the pieces of the puzzle connected on his head, "The Graveyard…THAT'S IT! Don, I know what to do!".

The sound of whistles from the guards alerted them that they had been found.

"We have to split!" Jaune said before jumping off the restaurant's balcony to a downward street below.

"Kid! Where are you going?!" Don yelled.

"I need to do something! Meet me at the forest!" Jaune said, the mere mention of the forest was enough for Don to realize his student was back in full determination, and he couldn't do less.

Don ran off distracting the guards as Jaune ran away in a different direction. The riots seemed to be calming down a little with meant Jaune could travel across the city much easier, but not without having a run in with some guards.

Jaune managed to avoid capture as he finally made it back to the market. The place was empty and after a few diversions through some alleyways, Jaune escaped his pursuers and made it to his target. He started to slam the door of the place as hard as he could, checking multiple times in case the guards caught up to him.

The blacksmith ran from the back of his shop, battle axe in hand, he approached his barricaded door. "I told you! You rioters won't get a single weapon from me!".

"Open up! Please!" Jaune kept yelling as he knocked the door aggressively.

The blacksmith opened a small window on the door to see who the person was, "You?!".

"I NEED ME SWORD!".

* * *

Sunset was approaching and against all obstacles, Jaune made it to the mountain forest south of Sevillana. He ran the up-hill path following the bits of old abandoned road he had found the night before.

Jaune was quickly getting exhausted, but he had to hurry, he didn't know if Cardin and The Major had already attacked the Temple of Saint Aradia or not. He feared for Violet and Victoria's well-being, not knowing if they had been captured. He ran in the hopes of catching up with Dominique, but the road to the temple was long and difficult to transverse, this didn't dissuade him though, he had a plan and it had to work, people's lives were at risk.

Jaune rushed until he finally made it to the first resting area on the path to the temple. He stopped to catch his breath, and in a minute or so he was ready to keep going, but to his surprise, the people he was looking for found him first.

Jaune was pushed by a wind blow from the side and soon enough ice covered his legs up to his belly. From the woods, a group of witches lead by Victoria and Violet emerged with their staves aimed at him.

"You are as stubborn as you are dumb, you know that?" Victoria said sarcastically.

"Violet! Victoria! You are ok! Oh, you don't know how glad I am".

"Huh! Glad?! I doubt that!" Victoria answered but Violet intervened with a soft voice

"Well, the old man did say he was worry". She said.

"What?" Jaune asked before looking behind the witches and seeing Don tied with ropes and kept held by two sisters.

"Oh, hey, kid! It's ok, I managed to befriend them while you were gone!". Don said right before being hit in the head with a staff.

"Quiet! Prisoner!".

Victoria ignited her staff and put it in front of Jaune's face. "Don't think for a second you are making it out of here. I let you go once already and look what happened! Our beloved Cathedral. Our dear sisters!".

Jaune was scared, but his determination was bigger, especially now that he knew they had a chance. The witches being here meant that Cardin hadn't attack the temple yet. He looked at her in the eyes and moved his head, putting it against the tip of the staff as if daring her to fire. "Do what you think you must. But I'm not here to fight you. I'm here to fight with you".

Victoria was shocked, she wasn't expecting this answer, it surprised her enough to back off a little.

Jaune continued, "I told you, we are not your enemies, we are here to help".

"Why should I believe you?!".

"Because I'm here!" Jaune declared, Violet kept looking at him with sadden eyes. Jaune looked at her and continued, "Violet, you asked me if I was willing to sell my soul if it meant I could bring people peace. If that's what it takes, so be it. I will not run away; I will not leave. I will stand to the last minute if that means I can save you all".

The witches all looked at each other, they didn't know what to think about this man.

Jaune turned once more at Victoria. "Listen to me. The Major is after the Book of Shadows, he knows about it and about the temple, he is sending 4 huntsmen after it, they most likely will bring guards with them". The witches started to talk with each other in fear and worry. "You want to protect your family? Let us help you, Victoria. If I betray you feel free to do whatever you want to me but I promise you, I will fight to the end to protect you".

Victoria backed off, she knew the Major was after them, but the fact that he knew about their sacred book, the fact that he knew about the temple, it was alarming, it meant her sister was at risk. But how could she even trust this man? "I…I can't…You are a huntsman! They sent you here! That's what Mother Emilia said!".

Violet stepped in, "Then Mother Emilia is wrong!" The witches were in shock, but Violet kept going, "If he came here to protect us, it means he is not what Mother Emilia said he is. Victoria look at me, we don't stand a chance you know it. If the guards find the temple is all over".

Victoria closed her eyes, she refused to believe Mother Emilia could be wrong, but their chances looked slimmer and slimmer.

"We need them" a witch said with a shy voice. She awkwardly hid behind her staff before gathering the bravery to keep talking, "We are not fighters. But they are huntsmen, we could use their help".

Don and Jaune were surprised, they had seen what the witches were capable of, they were stronger than a regular civilian. But the faces of the rest of the witches said it all.

"You are not fighters?" Don asked.

Violet turned at Jaune and started to explain, "No. When we started the Coven and the guards began to chase us, we realized we needed to defend ourselves. So, we started using the staves as weapons and had a blacksmith modify them on the pretext that it was for easier use. We took books from the library and started to train but really, we have beginner's level knowledge at best".

Another witch approached him and continued, "We managed to unlock our auras, but really, Victoria is the only one talented enough to actually unlock her semblance".

"Stop it already! Stop talking as if we are working with them!" Victoria replied but the witches didn't stand with her.

"You have a better option? Because I don't think anyone here wants to die" The witch replied in defiance.

Violet looked at Jaune, "Do you have a plan?".

Jaune smiled at her, "I do. But I need you to stand with me".

Violet gave him a smile back before she turned with a serious face at Victoria.

Victoria clenched her teeth in frustration. With a swift move, she swung her staff with a charge of earth dust and spawned rocks to break the ice, freeing Jaune's legs. "You better not make me regret it".

The witches untied Don who happily hopped towards his apprentice. "Alright! Let's get down to business! What is the plan, lad?".

Jaune walked up the stairs and addressed his new witch forces. "We are getting attacked from down the mountain. I need every sister available to stand up to them".

"We told you, we are not fighters".

"That's not all you said. You said you had basic training and you have dust. We just need to exploit every advantage we have and we can tip the scale".

"What do you have in mind, lad?".

"No one knows the terrain better than you. You know all the ins and outs. Every hiding spot, every route, I saw it. If we split in groups, we can force them to do the same. Smaller groups mean lower threat. We can take them out in ambushes easier".

The witches were starting to get motivated by Jaune's confidence.

"Haha! Guerrilla warfare! I love it!". Don said enthusiastically.

"There is one more thing" Jaune continued. He walked down the stairs and towards Violet and Victoria. "I know is a lot to ask…But I need the Book".

The sisters saw him in shock. Victoria was distrustful, but Violet grabbed her shoulder and smiled at her, trying her best to ensure her sister, it was what had to be done.

* * *

Down in the underground halls of the Temple of Saint Aradia, word was spreading about a counter attack. The remaining witches that escaped capture earlier in the day were being asked to join Jaune's forces, quietly though. Jaune requested that Mother Emilia was not involved in the fight. He claimed that he wanted to keep her safe as the Major specifically targeted her. The witches were under the instruction of not telling her about the fight to come and lock her in her chamber underground. He convinced them that if she knew what was going on, maybe she would surrender herself, and if they wanted to protect her, the witches had to leave her out of this.

Many of the sisters of the Coven decided against joining, too afraid to actually fight. But those that were willing to stand with their sisters were told to meet the forces outside the Temple where Jaune and Don were coordinating the strategy.

Violet and Victoria stepped in the main ceremonial chamber, they nervously walked towards the altar. "This is a bad idea" Victoria said as they got closer to the statue of the God of Darkness that guarded their sacred text, the Book of Shadows.

"Jaune said it was key to the plan, we have to trust him" Violet replied, she couldn't hide she had her doubts, taking the Book was sacrilege, but if it meant it would be kept safe, she had to do it.

"Why?! Why do you trust him so much!? We are talking about someone you met yesterday, for crying out loud!" Victoria asked, she just couldn't understand.

Violet smiled and chuckled a little, much to her sister's confusion. She then gave her a calm and sweet look before responding, "And in that time, you know what I've seen? I've seen him offer his help to a complete stranger just because it was the right thing to do. I saw how desperately he fought to help a dying old man even when there was nothing else to be done. I saw someone who was willing to save the life of a person who minutes before was attacking him".

Victoria was starting to feel a little ashamed. She felt that going against Mother Emilia's back was wrong…But she was also starting to see Violet's point.

Violet smiled while looking at the statue, "When I got to know him…I realized he was in a lot of pain…I think I related a bit too much to him" She then turned back at her sister who was hearing her attentively "Maybe I'm wrong, but I think he is a person that is willing to give it his all if it meant he can prevent others from suffering as much as he has. I think that's a person I can trust".

Victoria gave her sister a smile. Violet always knew what to tell her in moments of doubt. After the loss of their parents, Victoria desired nothing but to be her sister's guardian angel. Even if that meant being mean at times. Her little sister was the most important person in her life. But she couldn't lie to herself, more often than not, it was Violet the one who gave her strength, she was the one who guided her in the right path, and if she trusted this man so much, maybe it was best to trust her on that.

" _Sign._ You better be right about him then. We are about to do sacrilege for a pretty boy you met at the market. Not a good look for a nun if you ask me". Victoria said jokingly which was followed by Violet's chuckle.

The two sisters were hesitant, but they had a mission and after a second thought they took the Book of Shadows from the God of Darkness' claws and ran outside to meet with the strike forces.

* * *

Sunset approached and Jaune and Don stood surrounded by Witches outside the Temple of Saint Aradia. They stationed lookouts at the end of both paths leading to the Temple and using a map from the Temple's library, they were coordinating the forces for the impending assault.

"We have 8 teams, is not much but that'll have to do. I want teams A, B and C spread out and head North, North East and North West respectively. The rest will be spread between those 3 teams". Jaune instructed as the witches acknowledged.

"There is a cave down this path we can use for hiding. Maybe we can stablish it as a meeting spot?" A witch said giving Jaune a better run down of the terrain.

"Perfect, team leaders take note. If your team gets disbanded, regroup at the cave. Remember, your safety comes first. If you are outnumbered, disengage. Do not start a fight you don't know you can win. Only focus on the guards, team G will take care of the huntsmen. If your team makes it to the base of the mountain, blend in the city, if you can, search for your captured sisters. We need all the backup we can get".

Violet and Victoria approached running. "Here it is".

"Great. Mother Emilia?". Jaune immediately asked.

"In her chamber, we locked her there like you asked". Violet answered. She then handed over the book to Jaune. When he was about to grab it though, Victoria quickly grabbed his hand.

"Wait…I want you to look at me in the eyes and promise me…" She said as she locked eyes with Jaune, "Promise me…that you will keep it safe".

Jaune looked at her in the eyes as she requested and without even blinking answered. "I promise, that I will keep it and you safe".

Victoria swallowed her pride and let go of Jaune's hand, allowing him to take the book.

Violet smiled before addressing the meeting, "How are we?".

Don sat down with his legs crossed "Battle plans are ready, come closer we'll go over it again and again until everything is clear", He said.

The sisters gathered with the other team leaders to hear the run down of the plan, not noticing that Jaune stepped away for a minute.

"Victoria, you'll lead team C, you'll take up the North East road" Don instructed.

"Is Violet on that team?" She asked, worried about her sister.

Don looked at her with a serious expression, "I'm afraid not. But don't worry, Violet will be in team G with me. I'll take care of her".

"But…" She tried to plead, ever so overprotective, but she was met with a hand on her shoulder from her dear sister.

"It's ok, focus" She said, reassuring her and bringing her mind back to the mission.

"I…You are right, I'm sorry" Victoria said with regret. The meeting continued as Don went through each step of the plan, down to deployment times and escape procedures.

"What about the book? What's the strategy?". Violet asked.

Jaune approached the meeting to answer the question with the book in hand. "We'll play hot potato" He said much to the witches' confusion. He kept going "The Book is one of their main targets. If they don't know who has it, they won't know who to go after. I'll give it to someone at random and every 20 minutes that person must hand it over to another one. Preferably another team. Avoid any fight as much as possible while holding the book. If they can't find it, they'll stay in the forest longer, giving us time to take them all out".

"Sounds like a good plan" a witch answered while crossing her arms impressed by this tactic.

"If the Major's forces make it to the Temple, the lookouts will send a signal fire to the sky. If that happens, all teams available should rush to the temple".

"What team are you leading?" Violet asked him.

Jaune looked at the ground with sorrowful expression, "Cardin will target me…".

The witches saw him with worry, especially Violet, but Don gave him a reassuring smile, Jaune knew everything would work out. He smiled at his troops giving a confident look to them which helped lift their moral. "I'll distract him to give everyone else a better chance. One last thing…Stay safe. I know I can count on you. Good luck" Jaune finished laying down his plan and dismissed the team leaders. The Witches' were ready for their counter attack.

A scout returned in a hurry, "They are coming!".

With that warning, Jaune deployed the Witches, the battle was about to begin.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoyed. As always, thank you for reading and any feedback both positive and negative is welcome.


	9. Dies Irae: The Fire Dance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The war is here. To protect the city, Jaune must face his past and push forward into the future.

**Chapter IX**

**Dies Irae: The Fire Dance**

The sun came down and the forest became dark and silent. The guard troops marched across the woods, illuminating their path with flashlights from their rifles. They were following the trail described by Cardin in his report, but the lack of moon light made it difficult to navigate the deep forest. Not only that, but the small drizzle falling on the area made the terrain muddy and difficult to step on. Many started to slip and fall, which only helped to startle the already nervous guards.

The guards were trained to deal with difficult situations, they were brave men and women, but even them heard the stories of the witches, they saw what they did to the city and now they were stepping in their creepy territory. No one would have blamed them for feeling unease.

At the tail of the group, the sound of a splash caught the guards' attention. "Come on, Jones. You are staying behind" A guard told her fellow who just slipped on the mud.

"I'm alright, I'm al…" Jones started to say, but the sound of rocks rolling down the mountain to their left startled him. "What was that?!". He said, prompting the squad to ready their weapons.

The guards all aimed their weapons to their left, waiting to see any sign of movement. They were so focused on the sound; they didn't realize the rest of the group had left them behind.

Jones started to shake once he noticed the squad had fewer people, only 5 guards stayed behind with him, but soon enough, chills came to his spin when the squad heard the sound of a little girl's laugh.

"Behind!" A guard said, as they all turned around quickly, aiming their weapons at the empty forest, but they didn't see a target.

The guards decided to move out on that direction, an idea Jones wasn't a fan off. They slowly walked towards the woods and away from the path in search for the witch they thought to hear.

They once more heard the sound of giggles and a strong wind blow made the trees crack. The guards started to hear movement coming from multiple directions, making them stand back to back in a circle. "Stay calm, stay calm" A guard instructed to her fellows, but not even her could hide her fear. Eventually the sound of leaves moving made Jones jump and aim his gun in the direction of the sound. The light of the flashlight allowed him to see the shape of a woman running and hiding behind the trees.

"I got you now!" Jones yelled before breaking formation and running after the witch, firing blindly at the woods.

"JONES!" the guard yelled as she ran after him, their fellows going after them.

As the guards ran through the forest, the ones that were behind were met with blue lights that pushed them into the woods. One by one, the guards disappeared until only 1 remained. She ran as fast as she could until she finally managed to reach Jones.

"What the hell?! Jon…" She was about to say but immediately became terrified at the sight of Jones kneeling in the ground, staring at the forest in terror.

The frightened guard lifted her flashlight shaking, and to her horror, 3 other guards were frozen and laid unconscious. She tried to make Jones stand up to run, but the sound of giggles paralyzed her. She was so scared; she dropped her gun and as the flashlight laid on the floor, it illuminated the witches surrounding them, staves in hand and ready to fire.

"AHHHHHH!".

* * *

The sound of gun fire in the distance was a clear sign that the assault had begun. The once peaceful mountain was now full of multiple combat sounds. Every rifle shot was another shake in Victoria's heart, it was impossible to know who had the advantage. All she could do was pray for the safety of her sisters and do her part on this war.

"Here" A sister said before handing over a brown package to Victoria.

"Thank you, stay safe" She wished to the sister who bowed and ran back to the woods.

Victoria put the package inside her cloak and mobilized her team.

* * *

In the middle of the forest, a witch kept running terrified, her sisters had been taken down and captured by the guards and now they were chasing after her.

The sister jumped over some fallen trees, but unfortunately the mud made her slip and twist her foot. Fear was bigger than the pain though, she was panicking as she heard the approaching guards. She gathered all her strength and forced herself to keep moving, using her staff as a walking stick.

As she struggled to get away, the witch turned around for a second and saw the lights of the guards looking for her. They were getting close. She had to hurry If she wanted a chance.

The terrain was erratic and a single misstep could mean the end for her. She was getting exhausted quickly and the adrenaline wasn't enough to calm her pain down. The thought of surrendering crossed her mind but she was too afraid to do so.

The guards spotted her and without a second though began to fire, hitting the trees around her. They were steadfast on their pursuit and she was too weak to fight them all on her own.

As she ran in a panic, she recognized the area around her and a bit of hope helped her move forward. She ran as fast as she could but the guards were getting closer. She finally managed to find what she was looking for, the cave, the safe spot she was told to run to if things went wrong. She was a little relieved until a blast of lighting dust ammo hit her in the back, stunning her and dropping her to the ground.

The guards finally caught her, two of them made sure the area was secured while a third handcuffed the prisoner.

"You see anyone?".

"No, all clear".

The guards said, before taking the sister in and leaving the area. If they had explored the place a bit more, they would have seen the cave and found the group of witches hiding there, all injured and scared…They were all that remained of their teams.

* * *

Victoria split her team in 3 squads to cover more ground, they were instructed to attack together to overwhelm the enemy from multiple directions. She stayed behind with a small squad of only 3 sisters at her side.

The sounds of the battle kept going, a few screams here and there gave shivers to her, she didn't know whether it came from the guards or from her dear sisters, but she remained hopeful and focus.

The sisters' attention was caught by the sound of bushes moving. Alerted, they had their staves ready and moved carefully towards the noise. Victoria lead the group and as she got closer to the bush, her heart kept rising and rising. Her grip on her staff got tighter as she was ready to strike.

As soon as she saw a figure coming out, she jumped to the offense, shooting a fire ball that was met with a shield.

"It's me! It's me!" Jaune said trying to calm down the battle-ready Victoria.

"Jaune?!" She said before coming at him and pushing him slightly, "I hate you! You scared me!".

"I scared you? You almost burned off my face!". He replied. The witches let out a sigh of relief and managed to relax a little.

Jaune joined Victoria's group for the time being. He wanted to know how the operation was going. He was a bit disappointed to hear that Victoria's squad hadn't found a single guard as he was hoping to get an idea of how strong the opponent was. However, this also gave him high hopes, the fact that Victoria hadn't been in a fight yet meant the guards still didn't make it that far, maybe they were doing better than he thought.

Victoria was seemingly worry about her team, she wished they had had the time to get communication equipment, but Jaune reassured her that they could handle it. He even gave her a compliment on her strategy.

She was still quite doubtful of him. The first time she met him, she felt so much fear that he would hurt Violet. But now, in their darkest hour, he stood there with them, by her side. Victoria couldn't stop wondering, why?

"Jaune…I need to ask you something". She said.

"Uh. Sure, what is it?"

"…Why?" Victoria asked with a bit of shame in her eyes. Jaune and the rest of the witches were surprised by the question, they even heard carefully as they also had curiosity, all the while Victoria pushed herself to continue, "You had plenty of opportunities to leave. Violet asked you to not get involved. She didn't want you to get hurt…So why? We have nothing to do with you. This isn't your city, these aren't your people, this isn't your fight!...Why did you stay?" she asked.

Jaune had an awkward smile and scratched the back of his head, "I guess…Because you needed it" his smile became less awkward and more kind, "I've seen so much suffering before…If I can do something to prevent it, then I want to do it…Someone has to".

Victoria was surprised by the answer but it filled her heart with hope. Violet was right, she said the exact same thing. Jaune only wanted to help others live a happy life, so that they wouldn't have to suffer what he has.

The witches chuckled a little which made Jaune a bit uncomfortable.

Victoria walked pass him with a smug smile and proud smile on her face, "Well, if that's the case, then I'll make you a deal. If we win this, I promise I'll apologize to you".

"That's a really generous offer, you should take it" A witch said jokingly much to Victoria's annoyance.

Jaune laughed a little, "You don't have to. But you know, maybe next time don't assume I'm a monster and I won't do that to you either. How is that for a deal?".

"You are a weird guy, you know?" Victoria said while chuckling herself.

"Ha!. If you think that, you haven't seen my master".

* * *

Sky and Dove rushed across the forest. Their speed was stellar, they were huntsmen in training after all. They never excelled in class but they were undeniably Beacon students. They kept an eye out for any signs of the witches, their weapons ready for combat.

They kept running with nothing but the light of the city illuminating the night in the small areas they found without trees, but as soon as they stepped back into the deep woods, they relied on nothing but their training.

As they approached another clearing in the forest, they made a quick stop as they heard the sound of a laugh.

"Bwahahahaha".

Dove and Sky stood back to back trying to pin point the source of the sound, but the laugh continued, it was as if it came from multiple directions, an entity that surrounded them and stalked them in the darkness.

"Bwahahahahaha!"

"Show yourself!" Sky yelled signaling Dove to get ready for the fight.

The wind started to blow even harder and the trees kept shaking more violently.

"You dare to step in MY DOMAIN?! TRASH!?" the voice said as the sound seemed to come from the woods.

"Sky…" Dove said a bit scared.

"Man up, dude. COME OUT! YOU COWARD!". Said Sky, trying to lure out their enemy.

"COWARD!? You have any idea who I am?! I am Arbolog the Amorphous! Dark Lord of shapes and contradictions! Your insolence invites my demonic WRATH!".

"You are that old man that was with Jaune, aren't you?" Sky asked, not impressed.

"N…No! I'm not that handsome devil! I AM A DARK DEMON! FEAR ME!".

"I swear, as soon as I find you, I'm gonna…"

"HAHAHAHA! I am everywhere and nowhere at the same time! You mortals will never be able to…" Don was interrupted by a gun shot from Sky's rifle.

"AH! MY LEG! SON OF A…OK, THAT'S IT! LADIES! LIGHT THEM UP!".

The witches' staves ignited and fire balls flew from all directions at the two huntsmen. Dove and Sky were able to evade many of them but were caught by surprise by Violet who shot a powerful wind blow that pushed them back.

Sky and Dove were quick to grab their weapons and charged once more. The witches continued their assault, lighting and fire was shot from multiple directions. The two huntsmen were hit many times, but their endurance didn't compare to that of mere civilians. Soon enough they managed to close the gap and fight the witches up close.

The witches knew they didn't stand a chance, the only way they could beat them was by outnumbering them and strike them from all around, but when Dove and Sky started to strike them, many started to panic.

Dove stroke with his sword, forcing the witches to return to the woods for cover. Meanwhile Sky's halberd was massive enough to slam a witch to the ground in one hit even after she successfully blocked it.

"Sorry, sweet heart. Chivalry is dead" Sky said before bringing his halberd down on the witch for a killing blow, only for the blade to meet a shield with a burning windmill emblem.

"Over my dead body!" Don proclaimed as he slashed Sky multiple time and forced him to back off.

Dove continued trying to strike the witches but suddenly his face was smacked with a staff. Victoria might had been the best fighter in the Coven, but when it came to protecting her sisters, Violet was just as fierce. In a swift swing she launched two fireballs at Dove, who couldn't react in time and just took them both. Dove recovered quickly and charged at Violet, but she just stood there with a smile on her face. Dove didn't have time to think about it but soon enough it was apparent what it meant, as Violet's witches stroke him with multiple shots of lighting dust. Dove dropped his sword, stunned a bit, he didn't have time to recover this time as immediately after the shocks, Violet stroke him.

Don and Sky dueled. Every shot from his rifle was met by Don's shield. Frustrated, Sky decided to overpower his opponent with brute force and jumped on a melee offense. He brought his blade down but Don merely evaded the strike, always a big grin in his face. Sky became more and more annoyed at Don's mockery as he kept evading his attacks.

"Come and fight! Oldman!".

Don smiled, "As you wish, brat". He said before activating his spear. Don charged for a direct thrust with his spear, something Sky barely managed to block. The two of them then engaged in a fight of long rage melee weapons, Sky's halberd and Don's spear. They slashed and stroke each other multiple times. Don had the advantage for a while, something that frustrated Sky a lot, but he was an old man, a prolonged fight was very taxing on him, meanwhile Sky was young, his endurance was way better and he was starting to notice Don's exhaustion.

"Getting tired already, grandpa?" Sky taunted his enemy.

Don was starting to breath hard, but always the jokester, he stood with a big smile on his face before replying. "You know, you should respect your elders. Maybe you'll learn a thing or two".

"Ha! Like what?"

"You know, the value of life. How to pay taxes. Not to stand in the middle of a group of angry nuns with magic staves".

"Wait, what?!" Sky said before looking around at the witches before getting shocked by lighting dust.

Violet stroke with a charge of explosive dust which sent Dove flying in Sky's direction, hitting him and launching them both. They were about to land in the woods when a rock wall came out of the ground thanks to a witch's earth dust. Suddenly 3 more walls appeared around them trapping them in a rock box. Sky got Dove off of him. Their only escape was to climb up, a fairly easy jump for a huntsman, but Dove was too beaten up. Sky tried to escape but as soon as he made it to the top, Violet and another witch blasted him with fire balls back inside.

Sky and Dove laid on their backs inside the rock cage and as they looked up, they saw a smiling Don, flute in hand walking on top of the cage.

"I told you to fear me, didn't I? Please get comfortable. How about a lullaby?" Don said, taunting his prey before playing his flute. The witches covered their ears as Don's hallucinatory melody put Dove and Sky in a trance, putting them out of commission.

* * *

Jaune and Victoria's group kept walking for a while. Jaune didn't admit it, but he felt a bit safer standing with the group. His worries were higher though, the plan had him on his own for a reason, and he had spent too much time with Victoria.

"I'll head off west. See how we are doing".

"Ok, I'll try to regroup with the rest of the team and…" Victoria started to say, but the sounds of gun shots and fireballs surprised them. To their shock, the sound was coming from very close and was followed by the screams of injured witches. "No!" Victoria said before rushing to the scene.

Victoria and her squad ran ahead of Jaune towards the noise, desperate to help the rest of their team. On one of the resting areas of the path, they found a witch partially stunned and barely able to walk, she was limping towards them, "Don't! They are coming!", the witch warned them before collapsing.

Victoria ran down the stairs to her aid but before she could make it to the resting area, she and her squad were met with dust bullets from four approaching guards. Victoria reacted by firing fireballs at the guards, firing in a panic just made her aim poorly. The other three witches jumped in the fight with fire balls and lighting bolts of their own, but the fire fight was short lived.

Suddenly the guards stopped firing and Victoria saw it as an opportunity, she shot a fireball straight at them…but to her surprise, the fireball was cut and dispelled in midair by a blade. Russel leaped at high speed ready to take Victoria down, she was caught off guard by his speed and couldn't react fast enough, by the time she was ready to fire once more, Russel's daggers were already about to slice her. She stood there in shock only to be pushed out of the way by Jaune who took the strike with his shield.

Russel leaped back, standing in the middle of the resting area, a bit frustrated at missing his kill.

"Victoria! Are you alright?!". Jaune yelled to a shocked Victoria, who shook her head to snap out of it and quickly stood up once more.

Russel struck once more in frustration, this time aiming straight at the distracted Jaune. Victoria warned him on time and Jaune's shield was locked with Russel's daggers. Victoria moved quickly pass Jaune's shield and touched Russel's arm, a wave of purple aura flowed from her hand and quickly covered his body.

Russel's body started to feel extremely light, he couldn't sustain his push against Jaune and started to float a little.

"Kick him! Now!" Victoria instructed Jaune.

Jaune did as told without a second thought and kicked Russel away. To his surprise, Russel was sent flying back weightless, much to the guard's confusion and awe. Victoria's semblance had nullified the effect of gravity on his body. He would have flown away from the mountain itself, if a hand hadn't reached him and pulled him back to the ground, it did so with such strength, the shock wave made Victoria lose her focus and the effect of her semblance worn off.

As the dust settled, Russel stood up pained. A larger figured walked pass him illuminated by the light of the city.

"Thank so much, Jaune. You did it." Cardin said, mace in hand and a mad grin in his face, "You got in my way".

Cardin snapped his fingers which prompted the guards to take aim once more and resume fire, but the 3 witches were quick, they leaped and used wind dust to blow the 4 guards away from the resting area before chasing after them. "We'll deal with them! We are counting on you two!" a witch said before rushing to the forest, leaving the scene with her sisters.

Cardin was annoyed at the incompetence of the guards, but the scene was just so perfect for him. The resting area was a flat battle ground and in it only remained standing Russel, a witch, him… and that dumb idiot who needed to be reminded of his place.

"Kill the witch…He is mine".

Russel rushed once more, the chambers on his daggers infused the blades with gravity dust. Jaune saw the purple shimmer in them and immediately recognized it. "DODGE!". He told Victoria. The two of them leaped from the stairs into the resting area right before Russel brought his blades down, the gravity dust increasing the power of his strike and making a crater on the stairs.

After making their opponents lose the high ground, Russel leaped to strike Victoria down who barely managed to block his blades.

"Victoria!" Jaune yelled but he had no time to be concerned about her, as Cardin brought his powerful mace down on his shield, a blow so strong it pushed Jaune back even after blocking it.

"Don't worry about your little faunus friend. I'll take care her myself after I'm done WITH YOU!" Cardin said before bringing his mace down once more, this time, Jaune managed to evade the first strike and block Cardin's second swing, once more the strike was strong enough to push him back a bit.

Victoria was struggling to put some distance between her and Russel, whose strikes were as vicious as they were fast. But they didn't call Victoria the best fighter in the Coven for no reason. She bought her time walking backwards slowly until finally she saw her opportunity, Russel went for a stab that she evaded, his strike got the daggers stuck on a tree. Victoria took the change and put her staff on the back of his head, pulling him and headbutting him multiple times, she then stepped aside slightly and swung her staff quickly, bashing him in the face with strength and pushing him backwards. The impact got his daggers unstocked but it gave her the distance she was looking for and without giving him any chance of recovering, Victoria, pushed him with wind dust. She used another blast of her wind dust to push herself upwards and from midair she sent fireballs raining on her opponent. Russel stood up quickly, barely evading the fire storm and as soon as Victoria landed, he rushed at her, his fast strikes made her miss her subsequent attack.

Cardin had a sense of déjà vu, the sight of Jaune struggling to withstand his strikes took him back to their days at Beacon, to the days in which this useless, fraudulent and pathetic excuse of a warrior kept falling to the ground with tears in his eyes. He wanted to make him suffer, he deserved it, he deserved it for what he did, for what he was doing!

"How dare you! Stand. Besides. THEM!" Cardin kept saying; every strike was fueled with more rage.

Jaune's defense had improved a lot, but Cardin didn't waste his time either. He had become significantly stronger. Jaune however, was not about to give up, he couldn't allow himself to do so.

Cardin raised his mace for another blow, but Jaune's training caught him off guard. Jaune leaped to the side in a dodge roll, evading the strike. Just as his master taught him, Jaune didn't wait for an opening, he moved and found one. He sliced Cardin multiple times from the side. In response, Cardin swung his mace aiming at his head, but Jaune docked and slashed him with an upwards slice. Jaune knew that if he wanted to end this, his assault had to be faster. He launched at Cardin, his blade met his mace multiple times, but to Cardin's annoyance, Jaune was actually pushing him back. The little shrimp was actually overwhelming him, this however didn't last, Cardin's rage just kept rising and soon his response was more brutal.

Cardin slammed his mace against Jaune's shield to make him lose balance, he then tried to hit him but Jaune was able to evade the second strike. Jaune launched another attack, but Cardin was waiting for it. He swung his mace and hit him in the arm, pushing it aside before grabbing it with his left hand and pushing Jaune's neck with his right wrist.

"You stand with murderers and terrorists. Don't be stupid!" Cardin said angrily.

Jaune struggled to breath but he was focus on his goal, he had people to safe. He moved his body and managed to move his head down under Cardin's arm, bashing him in the chin with his shield. Cardin let go of Jaune's arm and before he could respond, Jaune bashed him in the face once more with his shield, over and over and over again.

Cardin was a bit dizzy and stunned. Jaune however stopped his assault, trying to recover his breath. "You are wrong…It's a misunderstanding…Cardin, just listen! I'm trying to end this!".

Cardin was holding his face, to Jaune's surprise though, he let out a chuckle. "Hehe. You think I don't know what they have done? If you are going to stand with the ones that killed her, THEN DIE WITH THEM!" Cardin yelled before striking Jaune with an explosive dust charge from his mace, sending him flying to the stairs.

"Jaune!" Victoria said, she quickly rushed to help him.

Jaune was stunned by the blast, barely managing to sit down. Victoria helped him but Cardin and Russel were approaching. As if things weren't dire enough. The 4 were surprised when the sky lit up with fire coming from higher up in the mountain.

"The signal …The Temple!" Victoria said, her shoulder was met by Jaune's hand, who pushed her as he struggled to stand up.

"Go".

"But…"

"I'LL BUY YOU TIME, JUST GO!" Jaune gave her a straight order, one that Victoria was reluctant to follow, but she knew there were sister hiding at the Temple, their lives were in danger. She nodded at him and immediately her body was covered by the wave of purple light of her semblance. Victoria then used a wind blow from her staff and rode it as a magic broom back to the temple.

Cardin looked at Jaune as he stood up painfully.

"Hahahah! I'll give it to you, Jaunie. You are way more fun than I remember…. But just as stupid"

Jaune folded his shield back into its sheath form and grabbed it with his left hand by the middle.

"Oh. So, you ARE giving up? Maybe you aren't that dumb…Too bad is too late for that".

Jaune placed the hilt of his sword inside the sucked of his sheath. "You are not going through".

Cardin laughed a little, before signaling Russel to chase Victoria. "Bring me her head".

Russel ran up the stairs, he moved at Jaune's right at a good distance. Jaune rushed at him as fast as he could, but Russel didn't mind him that much, knowing full well that even if he tried something, he was never going to be able to reach…Or so he thought.

Suddenly, the bottom half of the sheath extended and Russel was surprised by a hit up his stomach that took the air out of his lungs. Cardin saw in shock how Russel plummeted down the stairs back to the resting area, he laid on the floor struggling to breath.

With a mad face, Cardin lifted his sight and looked straight at Jaune. Soon enough the upper half of the sheath extended as well until the entire sheath had become a long pole. As the sheath extended a small portion of it locked itself to the cross guard of the sword and from it, bladed spikes covered it, completing Crocea Mors' transformation, into its spear mode.

"You are NOT GOING THROUGH!".

Cardin was completely mistaken. That fool he once knew was no more. Jaune had grown beyond that a long time ago. Before him stood a huntsman.

Jaune leaped from the stairs and launched a strike straight at Russel who was struggling to stand up. The blade barely missed him and hit the ground but this was meant to startle him and throw him even more off balance. Jaune started to spin his spear, attacking Russel multiple times in a short time, Russel struggled even more to block the strikes, stumbling and with even more difficulty to breath. Jaune didn't give him any time to respond before he delivered a kick that pushed him back and made him fall on his back.

Cardin was filled with rage, he charged at Jaune and hit him with his mace right in the chest, sending him flying backwards and rolling in the ground. But Jaune quickly recovered and in seconds charged once more. Jaune thrusted his spear at Cardin, an attack Cardin evaded by simply stepping to the side. He thought to himself how much of a fool Jaune was, fighting a battle he couldn't win and still as mediocre of a fighter as he always was, he was full of confidence…until he took a glimpse at Jaune's smile. The thrust was a faint, Jaune quickly swung the bottom end of the spear and bashed Cardin in the back of the head, dazing him. He then made a spin move and a low sweep, hitting Cardin's legs and making him fall. As Cardin hit the floor, Jaune brought his blade down on him for a stab. But Cardin managed to roll away.

Russel barely had time to recover before he launched a new assault to protect Cardin. He swung his blades one after the other but Jaune blocked every single strike. Jaune soon enough saw the opportunity to increase the gap between the two, he saw an opening, stepped back and slashed Russel from the bottom across the chest and with a quick spin he hit him in the face with the bottom end of the pole, pushing him back.

Cardin and Russel stood next to each other and without a second thought, they both attacked Jaune together. Russel's blades came from the left while Cardin's mace came from the right, but Jaune wasn't ready to give up yet. He dodged Cardin's strike and blocked Russel's daggers. Cardin then swung his mace back which Jaune dodged once more before slashing him with his spear and with the same motion he quickly swung his blade at Russel to force him to stay back. Don's spear training was tailor made to fight multiple opponents at the same time and Jaune was proving its effectiveness, but this didn't mean he could not be overwhelmed, plus he was still in the process of mastering the weapon, and his lack of expertise was about to show.

Cardin rushed at Jaune, but he thrusted with his spear to force him to back off. Cardin however was able to lock the blade inside of his mace catching Jaune off guard. Russel then stroked him, he tried to block the strikes but Cardin restricted his movement and Russel was able to slash him multiple times. In the struggle, Jaune was able to free his spear but as he stumbled back Cardin brought his mace down on his face with force, launching Jaune back. Jaune struggled to remain standing but his vision was starting to get a bit blurry for the raw strength of Cardin's hit. Unable to react quickly enough, Jaune tried to swing his spear to strike Russel and stop him in his next assault, but he just dodged the spear and slashed him again.

"AAAAAH!" Jaune yelled in pain.

Cardin let out a laugh. "Music for my ears!" He said before hitting Jaune once more with his mace and launching him to the side.

Jaune laid on the floor, struggling to keep going. The rain was starting to become a bit stronger as Cardin and Russel walked close to him.

"You lost again. Why don't stay there and cry like back at school?" Cardin said, reminding Jaune how worthless he was back at Beacon. But once again Cardin wasn't seeing this wasn't the same Jaune he once knew.

Cardin was surprised and extremely annoyed as soon as he heard the sound of Jaune's laughter.

"What's so funny, you dumbass?!" Cardin yelled in anger.

Jaune grabbed his spear and stood back up, "A Knight Errant doesn't let their enemies see them cry. They make them tremble…at the sight of their smile!". Jaune proclaimed as he charged once more at his opponents, it didn't matter how much pain he had, it didn't matter how dire things looked, he had a smile on his face. A smile that wasn't meant to pretend everything was alright, a smile that didn't mean he was hopeful everything would sort itself out. It was a smile that showed his resolve to not let the world bring him down and fight until the end to make things right.

Jaune swung and slashed Russel from the top. He blocked it with his blades but the spiked cross guard managed to stab him in the arm, his aura protected him but it was painful and strong enough to make him drop a dagger. Jaune then rushed at Cardin who immediately swung his mace with a charge of explosive dust to the ground to stop him in his tracks, but Jaune anticipated the strike, he jumped and evaded the mace and the explosion. A dodge roll on the ground and Jaune was ready for the next assault. He thrusted his spear on Cardin's side and quickly spun it hitting him with the bottom end of the spear, spun once more and slashed him again and finally did one last spin to hit him with force with the spiked cross guard, pushing him forward towards Russel.

Cardin landed in his knees, extremely pissed. He stood up quickly enraged. Russel had time to grab his dagger, he was in pain but he was packing more surprises. The three of them charged for a final squirmish. Jaune stopped Russel on his tracks by thrusting him with his spear, but soon enough Cardin came in from the right with an upper slam, Jaune was able to evade it and hit him in the face before returning to Russel who leaped forward and locked his daggers with Jaune's blade. Jaune pushed back hard but Russel wasn't willing to give up. To Jaune's surprise, Russel's blades got infused with lighting dust and while locked to his spear, the electricity shocked him.

Jaune held on to it, struggling to resist the electric charge. He lifted his face with difficulty and saw Cardin rushing at him, ready to finishing him off. In a moment of quick thinking, Jaune activated his semblance to resist the electric charge and then moved the other end of his spear to hit Cardin in the chest, redirecting the electric current at him. Cardin was shocked with electricity which made him drop his mace and sent him flying far enough, he felt down the resting area and rolled down the mountain.

"Cardin!" Russel yelled but he was met with a fist to the face that pushed him backwards.

In a despaired attempt, Russel made a run for it and rushed to the stairs, trying to head to the Temple. Jaune was too exhausted and hurt to run after him, but he immediately remembered another part of his training and without a second thought threw his spear like a javelin, pinning Russel's clothe against a tree. Russel forced himself out of the lock by ripping his clothe off, but as soon as he felt a bit of relief for getting out quickly, Jaune bashed his face with Cardin's mace, breaking his aura and knocking him out.

Jaune stood exhausted in the rain, struggling to stand up. He dropped Cardin's mace and took a minute to recover his breath. He couldn't believe it, he actually did it. He would have been rejoicing if the pain wasn't so bad. He aura was helping but the blast he took and the hit on the head was causing him troubles to remain standing. He didn't have much time to rest though. His mind soon went back to the signal fire. If the guards made it that far, he had to act quickly if he wanted to end this. He dropped Cardin's mace and got his spear back before running up the mountain. The battle wasn't over yet.

* * *

Victoria flew as fast as she could. Her mind was scrambled with thoughts and worries. Worries for the coven, worries for Violet and worries for Jaune who she left behind. She was despaired as she rushed up the mountain, tears of fear came down as she thought of everything that might have happened to her dear sisters. She couldn't bare the idea of losing them, of not being there to protect them.

She finally made it to the Temple and got off her staff. It was odd, they all saw the signal fires, but the sentinels weren't there. Victoria couldn't understand, the place was empty, not a single person was in sight. This wasn't what she was expecting. In her mind, the place was full of guards rounding up the sisters, but that wasn't the case. Not a single soul. Were they mistaken? No, the flare was clear. Victoria kept on pondering for a moment before she got hints she was fearing to find. Scorched marks in the floor and some rocks. She looked closer and saw ice and stones that weren't there before, as well as empty shells from a dust weapon. It was clear that a fight had happened…But where was everyone?

"No…" Victoria said to herself, she then rushed inside the temple, her staff ready had the worst had happened.

As she ran down the spiral staircase, Victoria's fears came true. Intruders had invaded the sacred halls of the Temple of Saint Aradia, mad and ready to prey on the witches hiding in it. They were everywhere, running around and breaking the ancient artifacts, and to her horror, they were running after her dear sisters.

"OPEN THE DAMN DOOR! WITCH!" a man yelled as he slammed a door angrily, a machete in hand and a mad look on his face. Next to him, another man and a woman stood, both armed with simple tools, a shovel and a bat.

The man had enough and started to hack the door open with his machete, the screams of the scared witches could be heard clearly after each strike to the door.

"HEY!" Victoria yelled, catching the raiders' attention. Without giving them a chance to respond, Victoria shot a wind blow at them, pushing them away from the door. The machete wielding raider immediately rushed at her with the intend to kill the witch, but Victoria was faster. She shot a fire ball at him, burning him slightly, a detail that was surprising to her; she then used earth dust to imprison all three raiders before blowing sleep powder to knock them all out.

"Victoria!" A scared sister said before embracing her. "Thank you! Thank you so much!".

The other sisters were relieved, and Victoria did her best to calm down the sister hugging her. "It's ok, we'll make it out, I promise". She said to the terrified sister.

Victoria then addressed the other sisters who were equally afraid but a bit calmer. "How many are there?".

"We don't know. They broke the door down and just got in".

Victoria was frustrated but this wasn't time to be angry, she had to protect the sisters. "What about Mother Emilia? Have anyone seen her?!".

"She was still in her room. Everything was so quick".

Mother Emilia, Jaune had told her that she was one of the Major's main targets. Victoria had to find her and protect her at all cost. It was the only way to ensure the survival of the Coven.

"Things outside aren't much better. The wine cellar is in the deepest level, you can hide there. Stay together and barricade the door. I'll go get you in a bit". She said, directing the remaining sisters to run down stairs before running in another direction.

"Where are you going?!"

"Mother Emilia. I'll go get her. I'll meet you at the cellar! JUST GO!" Victoria answered as she kept running.

The temple was a disaster. Broker furniture, burning books. The history and sanctity of the temple was being violated. It was heart breaking for Victoria, but she didn't have much time to cry over it.

On her way to Mother Emilia's chambers, Victoria fought more raiders, immobilizing them and protecting the sisters they were attacking. Every sister she encountered she sent to the cellar before she kept going.

The raiders, it was strange. Victoria was expecting guards, but this people... The more she thought about the one she burned, the more she started to notice a pattern within all raiders she fought. Not a single one had their aura unlocked, they didn't know how to fight, they just rushed erratically with anger. It was clear to Victoria that these people weren't guards in disguise, they were civilians, regular everyday people of the city.

Victoria ran as fast as she could until she finally made it to Mother Emilia's chambers. To her horror, the door was broken and blood was spilled everywhere.

"Mother Emilia!" Victoria ran inside the room despaired. It was empty, books and paper scattered around, but not a single trace of Mother Emilia. Victoria was horrified but a bit hopeful…that was until she turned around and notices something. She saw the broken door once more and realized that it was outside the room. It wasn't pulled out; it was blown out from inside. "What happened?".

She left the room, rushing to find any clue of where Mother Emilia was. Her search for clues leaded her to follow the blood splatters, she was afraid of the worst but this was the best bread crumb trail she had. She ran through hallway after hallway…and the bread crumb trail got worst and worst. Soon enough, she started to find bodies. Men and women, the blood stain trail had become a path of corpses. The raiders…the civilians that attacked her family, they were monsters, weren't they? She couldn't stop wondering, trying to justified the sight, but even then, she couldn't deny the truth, they were all dead.

Victoria kept following the path until eventually she heard a voice coming from the main ceremonial hall. She ran and as soon as she made it to the end of the hallway, she was greeted with the sight of Mother Emilia scrambling through the altar of the God of Darkness.

"Where is it?! WHERE IS IT!? Those damn blasphemous fools!" She kept saying in anger, trying desperately to find something.

"M..Mother Emilia?" Victoria said a bit worried; she didn't have time to think before she had to get down to the floor. Mother Emilia had turned at her and without hesitation she used a scepter like short version of the witches' staves and shot a fireball straight at her, barely missing her.

Mother Emilia had a mad look, her hair was messy and her garment had marks of previous fights. She looked like a rabid animal, a scepter in each hand and blood stains covering her body. After a few seconds, she realized who the one she attacked was, and as if a switch was flipped, she stood up and her mad face was replaced with a kind smile.

"Oh, Victoria. What a surprise. I'm so glad you stopped by". She said, not even acknowledging the fact she just attacked her.

Victoria was confused, Mother Emilia was acting stranger, she slowly grabbed her staff and stood up as to not startle her again.

"Mo…Mother Emilia…What…What's going on?" She asked nervously.

"Oh, nothing sweetheart. I was locked in my room by some prankster, I guess. But let's talk about it later. It seems someone took our sacred text…Why don't you help me find it?".

Victoria was shaking a little, but she had a tendency to always trust Mother Emilia's judgement. She pulled the brown package she received earlier out of her robe and showed it to her. "I…Here it is, Mother. I…I'm sorry, we were trying to keep it safe".

The two of them were quick to turn around at the sound of a door slamming open and two raiders rushing at them. As one ran at them with an axe in hand, the other fired with a rifle. Victoria took cover behind a stool in the hall, but Mother Emilia wasn't faced at all. She quickly shot a lightning bolt at the rifle raider with one scepter and in seconds used the other with earth dust to crush her against a pillar. The axe raider was quick but Mother Emilia simply froze him with ice, leaving only his head free.

"You dare to defile sacred ground. You come here with your ignorant anger" She put her scepter in the man's face "I tried to safe you, but every day you taught me, you are beyond lost". The man was in panic, yelling and crying for mercy as his body was trapped. "May the Dark brother be kind to your insolent soul" Mother Emilia said before incinerating the man's head.

The screams of the man were heard in the entire temple, the raiders on the upper levels looked down at the horrific scene and ran away outside in terror.

Victoria was in shock, horrified at the act. She couldn't believe it. Why? Mother Emilia was always kind, always responsible and sweet. She took them in when she and Violet lost their parents. She always took care of the sisters….Why?

"Well, that was unfortunate. Anyways, sweetie, please give me the book". Mother Emilia smiled at Victoria whose skin became pale with fear. She was shaking in terror, holding the book in her arms tightly. Mother Emilia addressed her once more, "I won't ask again".

Victoria stood up, not being able to see her in the eyes out of sheer horror, but she needed to ask. "W…Why?".

Mother Emilia chuckled, "What do you mean? They attacked first sweetie".

"They were civilians."

"They were, but they choose the wrong side" Mother Emilia replied.

Victoria couldn't believe what she was hearing. "The wrong side?! They are the citizens we were supposed to protect! We made the Coven for them, to help their lost ones to…"

"And look at what they did. Assaulted our home, hunted us down. Victoria, darling, can't you see? They stopped being more than animals a long time ago. Years of indoctrination turned them into a lost cause. We have a responsibility to our lords" She argued.

Victoria was heartbroken. "Why do you want the book?", she said with tears shocking her voice.

Mother Emilia started walked towards her, " _Sign._ Don't make this harder than it already is. The Book of Shadows is the main pillar of our faith. I'm going to need it for when we rebuild the city a new".

"What?! What do you….The speech….They were right..."

"The 24hrs are about to end. With or without the Major, the spirits of the dead will consume that sinful and lost city, Victoria, and the Coven of Saint Aradia will guide it to a new era of peace and harmony"

Victoria started backing off. "This is not what the Coven stood for, we just wanted to help the people!".

"And we are. But to get a beautiful garden, we first need to CUT THE WEED!" Mother Emilia said before shooting a fire ball. Victoria evaded it but was soon hit with a second one from the second scepter. Victoria dropped the book; she was quick enough to pick it up again before Emilia could strike her with an ice beam.

Victoria was quick to put the book back inside her robe and ran away, trying her best to make it out of the temple. She was soon stopped in her tracks by an earth wall summoned by Emilia.

"I won't tolerate TREASON!", Emilia proclaimed. She then shot a flurry of fire balls. Victoria was quick enough to make an ice wall and protect herself.

She couldn't deny it anymore, Mother Emilia, the person she trusted more than her own sister, she was a vile person that would stop at nothing for her own goal.

The ice wall was destroyed with an explosive dust charge, pushing Victoria against the stone wall. As Emilia approached, Victoria took her staff and shot multiple fire balls, something Emilia didn't mind much, simply blocking them with her ignited scepters. Victoria ran to the side and shot a lightning bolt, but a stone wall came out in response.

If she wanted to have a chance, Victoria couldn't hold back. Her feelings for Emilia were clouding her judgement, but if she didn't do anything, the lives of thousands were in danger.

Victoria used her semblance and launched herself to the air. A lighting storm fell on Emilia whose stone barrier started to crumble.

Emilia responded with her own lighting, but this was a faint. Victoria was able to evade it with a wind blow, but Emilia then used plant dust to summons vines out of her scepter, binding her leg and pulling Victoria towards her. As soon as she got close, Emilia hit her with her scepter, enhancing the weight of the weapon with gravity dust and launching the weightless Victoria back, she then pulled her still bind leg again for a second blow.

Victoria approached Emilia quickly as she prepared a charge of explosive dust to finish her off, But Victoria thought fast, she froze Emilia's arm and locked it to the ground. She then put her feet on Emilia's shoulders, and before she could react with her freed arm, Victoria shot a blast of explosive dust right on her chest. The explosion launched Emilia backwards, making her hit the statue of the God of Darkness. Her aura broke but it saved her life; the explosion weakened her severely and she struggled to stand up. Victoria used the force of the explosion to launch herself to the upper floor, from that distance, she saw Mother Emilia laying on the floor, her heart was pained with regret and conflicting feelings, but she had to return to the field and help her sisters. She left the temple steadfast, the Coven had to learn the truth.

* * *

Jaune ran as fast as he could, in extreme pain. His aura was helping him but it wasn't as fast as he would have wanted it. Regardless of the pain, he had to make it to the top.

He ran and ran, slipping and falling many times as the rain poured stronger by the second. He was soaking wet, but he didn't care, he kept going, nothing was going to stop him.

As he finally made it to the temple, Jaune was greeted with the same sight as Victoria, an empty field with traces of a fight. Not a single person in the entire area. The rain made things harder to distinguish, but Jaune noticed something Victoria missed. There were foot marks heading in an odd direction. They were heading behind the temple, not inside it.

Jaune started to wonder what this could mean…but the crash of a thunder startled him and what came next, was worst.

Jaune was hit and launched to the side with a powerful blow if a mace, he had failed to notice as an enraged Cardin approached him from behind.

Jaune struggled to stand up once more, but Cardin didn't give him any chances before he stroke him again, launching him on his back.

Without saying a single word, Cardin brought down his mace again, his face was that of a mad bull. His eyes wide open and his teeth clenched. At the last minute, Jaune was able to unfold his shield and block the impact, which only served to anger Cardin even more. He slammed the shield again and again in frustration until finally Jaune took the chance to kick his leg and make him fall.

Jaune stood up quickly and drew his sword, and as he did, so did Cardin, mace ready.

The two of them charged at each other, Jaune blocked Cardin's strike and slashed him twice before thrusting him, but Cardin locked the blade on his mace and managed to disarm him, tossing the sword to the right.

Cardin assaulted with a barrage of strikes that pinned Jaune down behind his shield. Each Strike was stronger than the other, fueled with an irrational hate and anger. Jaune leaped to the side and dodge rolled, grabbing his sword in the process. Before Cardin could strike again, Jaune activated his great sword and slashed him, forcing him to block. Jaune moved pass Cardin before going for another slash, but Cardin blocked it once more and the two of them locked weapons, facing each other straight in the eyes.

Jaune could only see hatred coming from Cardin. It wasn't just that dislike for him had back at Beacon, Cardin genuinely hated him. He was always a bully, but Jaune never thought he would become a monster.

"I won't let you kill them, Cardin!".

"But you let them kill her?!…You let them kill her and then ran away!" Cardin yelled, unlocking the weapons and slamming Jaune in the stomach, launching him back.

Jaune could barely stand, he held his stomach in pain as he tried to recover his breath. But Cardin wasn't about to give him any chances. He rushed once more and Jaune evaded the attack, slashing him in the leg and making him fall on his side.

"What are you talking about?!" Jaune asked as he struggled to breath.

"The Fall" Cardin said as he struggled to stand up again. "It was them, Jaune. The faunus. The witches. It was them, IT HAD TO BE THEM!". He said before charging again. Jaune blocked his strikes but Cardin delivered them with such strength it still made him fall on his back, he had to roll once more to avoid an attack and grab his weapon, but Cardin was waiting for it and as soon as he did, he slammed him once more, pushing him back.

Jaune couldn't understand. "What are you talking abo…You…The White Fang. Is this about what you said!? Cardin, the White Fang didn't have witches!". Jaune was baffled, when Cardin accused the witches and the white fang of having a connection, he just assumed it came from his natural discrimination towards faunus. But Cardin…he actually believed that.

Cardin rushed with another strike, he delivered multiple swings while yelling, "I'M NOT STUPID, JAUNE!". Jaune evaded the swings but one last one finally got him and launched him once more to the floor, covering his face in mud.

"We all saw it! We all did! How can you deny it?!" Cardin kept saying, his breath was becoming faster due to exhaustion and exasperation. "We all saw the lights! We all saw the flashes on the tower, the flames! And when the Wyvern landed, we all saw the massive bright light! Explain it to me, Jaune! What was that if not magic, huh?! WHAT THE HELL WAS IT?!". He said in anger.

Jaune was in shock…Cardin…he was misunderstanding. Those lights, if wasn't the White Fang. The flames came from Cinder and the bright light…that was Ruby. Cardin was right, it was magic, he just didn't understand what that power was and where did it come from. He called it magic just because that's what fairytales call miracles like those.

Jaune stood up again. "It's not what you think. The Coven had nothing to do with that day!"

Cardin wasn't willing to listen, "STOP LYING AND DEFENDING THEM!".

"WHY WOULD I LIE!? Do you have ANY IDEA how much I lost in the Fall?!" Jaune yelled, trying to make Cardin listen to reason, but Cardin's rage made him an irrational mad man. He angrily slammed Jaune once more, striking him on the legs, side, shoulder. It was a brutal flurry that ended with a hit on the chest and Jaune with his back on the floor.

"WE ALL LOST THAT DAY!" Cardin yelled with all his strength, much to Jaune's shock. Jaune laid on his side in pain, just to see Cardin as he held his face, trying to contain his own anger and sadness. "We…we all lost that day…. We lost our home… We lost so many people…. Pyrrha…We didn't get along, BUT SHE WAS ONE OF OURS!".

"P…Pyrrha" Jaune said to himself, that was the person Cardin was referring to all along. To think that after all this time…Cardin of all people, was feeling that pain too.

"She didn't deserve that…She didn't...None of us did" The rain stopped falling, as Cardin took his hand from his face. "We stayed afterwards" Cardin said with a cold and calm voice, "We stayed and fought to clean everything up. The guys did, Professor Goodwitch did, even Velvet and her team, they stayed with us to heal the wound the Fang left us" Cardin stopped and looked at Jaune directly, "But you, of all people…" He said with anger.

Cardin started walking towards Jaune once more, mace ready for another blow. Jaune stood up quickly and barely evaded the strike.

"YOU SHOULD HAVE BEEN THERE!" Cardin yelled as he swung once more. "YOU SHOULD HAVE FOUGHT WITH US!", he said before slamming Jaune once more. Jaune had to get back to his shield. Cardin was assaulting viciously. "SHE WAS YOUR PARTNER!" He slammed the shield. "SHE WAS YOUR FRIEND!", He slammed the shield again. "WHERE WAS YOUR TEAM!?", another strike. "WHEN VELVET FELL EXHAUSTED, WHERE WERE YOU?!", a bash with rage. "WHEN GOODWITCH CRIED HERSELF TO SLEEP, WHERE WERE YOU?!", a slam so strong it made Jaune almost lose his balance. "WHERE WERE YOU, JAUNE!?", Cardin increased the speed of his strikes, he smashed the shield over and over and over and over again. "ANSWER ME! WHERE WERE YOU!?". The flurry of strikes overwhelmed Jaune until his defense couldn't resist is, Cardin bashed him in the stomach and launched him once more, making him cough blood.

Cardin struggled to remain conscious, his injuries and the exhaustion where affecting him badly, but his mind…Cardin's anger was making his head dizzy, he was losing touch with reality.

Jaune struggled to stand up, which only served to annoy Cardin more.

"When everyone left. I took the guys through Anima to hunt down the Fang. Imagine my surprise when I heard there were witches in North Anima" Cardin kept saying. "I knew there were faunus with magic, I knew I was right"

Jaune stood up, sword and shield ready, but his vision was blurry and his legs were shacking.

"I won't stop…I can't…I'm going to make them pay…I'M GOING TO MAKE THEM PAY FOR WHAT THEY DID TO HER! DO YOU HEAR ME?!" Cardin yelled, the rain had stopped and Jaune could now clearly see, the stream of tears coming down from Cardin's eyes.

Jaune's eyes got wide open…those words…He knew them, he heard them before. Jaune recognized the pain Cardin was in. He had told those same words with that same face to Cinder…and it almost caused the death of a loved one. Cardin…he wasn't going to stop; he lost the value of his own life. He bottled up his pain and sorrow and it turned him into a feral beast.

"Ca…Cardin" Jaune struggled to speak, but he pushed himself to do so. "I'm sorry…But you don't know what you are doing, and I can't let you continue…You are hurting others…You are hurting yourself…".

Cardin gave him an odd chuckle, "Don't talk…as if… YOU KNEW ME!".

Cardin and Jaune rushed at each other. Cardin slammed once more, a strike Jaune blocked with his shield, but to Cardin's surprise, Jaune responded immediately with a slice from the bottom followed with a shield bash that pushed him back. Cardin responded with a strike of explosive dust, but Jaune rolled to his side and quickly activated his greatsword, slashing him on the back with force multiple times, Jaune smashed Cardin's face with the flat side of his greatsword, throwing him off balance. As Cardin struggled to remain standing, he was met with a thrust from Jaune's spear followed with a flurry of strikes, Jaune spun his spear like the blades of a windmill, striking Cardin multiple times. Cardin recovered by slamming Jaune from above, his mace was blocked and locked with Jaune's spear. Cardin's strength was overpowering Jaune, but he was smarter, in a quick move, Jaune detached the sword form the top half of his spear, folding the pole quickly into the shield form, the swift move startled Cardin and left him open for a flurry of strike from Jaune's sword. One after the other, the slashed ate through Cardin's weak aura. Jaune pushed Cardin back with his shield and quickly activated his greatsword once more for a savage assault. Jaune swung at the mace and bashed it off of Cardin's hand. He then tossed his sword aside and tackled Cardin to the ground, pinning him on the floor and bashing his face with his fists.

Punch after punch after punch, Jaune smashed Cardin's face with anger and sorrow. A desperate attack to force him to stop. Frustration, Cardin's words kept resounding on his heart and mind. It pained him how much of himself he saw on him. He just wanted him to stop. Jaune kept going even after Cardin's aura broke, he kept punching with force, until Cardin's nose was broken and blood started to come out of his mouth. Eventually, Jaune calmed down and managed to stop himself. Exhausted, he grabbed his head in frustration. Cardin laid in the floor in excruciating pain. But he managed to remain conscious. The little pathetic kid he used to bully in school, just beat him to a pulp. He was surprised though when he started to feel drops falling to his face. The rain had stopped, the drops where Jaune's tears.

Jaune felt to the side, exhausted and barely able to move. He struggled to breath, and just laid there next to Cardin. The two of them looked straight at the sky, as the dark clouds moved along and the stars shined once more.

"I'm sorry" Jaune said with difficulty, but Cardin was too in pain to respond or even react.

"I…sho…should have been there" Jaune said, his voice showed guilt.

"I should have stayed…but it wouldn't have been for long anyways". He said.

Cardin, moved his head a little, trying to face Jaune.

Jaune continued, "They didn't do it…I know. I left because I know who did…Ruby told me…"

Cardin let out a sigh, of course Ruby would be involved.

"We've been chasing the people responsible ever since….We had our wins…and our loses" He kept explaining.

"Cardin…I do know you…I do, because I've been like you ever since I lost Pyrrha" Jaune said.

Jaune turned his head to face Cardin. "I let my hatred get the best of me…Weiss almost died too, because of me…Cardin…We can't keep hurting ourselves. Is not right. That's not a way to live. Ren, Nora, Ruby, they all tried to help me and I just kept that venom inside me. Dove, Sky and Russel also want to help you, if they didn't, they would have left a long time ago, don't you think?".

Cardin, turned his face back at the sky and soon Jaune did the same. The clouds kept moving slowly. After a few minutes, Cardin got the strength to speak again, even though doing so caused him a lot of pain. "I…just wish I could have done more…I can't take back the things I said or did to her…I can't take back all the things I did at Beacon. And now…I just can't fix it. It's too late. It's gone…everyone left, everyone kept going and I…I just didn't know what to do…".

"It's not too late…".

"Huh. Yes, it is. I'm a monster, Jaune. The first thing I noticed when the witches showed up was that only one of them was a faunus. I ignored it on purpose. I just wanted it so badly for them to be the ones…I just…I thought that if I ended them…I wouldn't feel so miserable all the time. That's why I dragged the guys in a goose chase. I'm a monster, I wanted to kill them all…just to feel better with myself…I wanted to kill people, so that it was easier to live with myself. What is wrong with me!?". Cardin said, frustrated tears came of his eyes.

"It's not too late." Jaune said again, much to Cardin's surprise. "I wanted to kill her. The one that caused the fall. And in doing so…I almost lost someone important to me. In doing so, I also lost myself. If it wasn't for my friends, I would have thrown away my life, just so that I wouldn't have to live with my guilt anymore... But is not too late. Is not too late to make things right, Cardin. Is not too late to learn from what we did. Is not too late…to accept that what happened, happened…and we have to live with that. It's not too late to learn, to grow, stand up…and keep going…It's hard, and it hurts every day, but we have to do it and we have to do it right. We owe it to them…to the ones that aren't with us. You and I, we owe Pyrrha, to at least try and stand up again, better than what we use to be".

Cardin kept looking at the sky. Jaune's words hit him hard, he would have lied if he said those words didn't give him a bit of hope. Hope that maybe one day he would be able to move past this, to be a better person. But a side of him was still incredulous. The guilt he felt kept telling him, that he didn't deserve it, he didn't deserve the chance to make things right. He saw himself as a vile person…But what if Jaune was right?

A few minutes passed as the two rivals laid in silence next to each other. The taste of blood in Cardin's mouth served as a reminder of his wrong doings, but…oddly enough, he felt a certain serenity. He had been piling up all his anger. All those words, he had them all locked inside, and now that he let them out…it was as if a massive weight had been taken from his shoulders. Jaune also felt a bit of peace, He now saw clearly the darkness that was inside him, what he could have been, and a wrong path to grow away from.

The peace as quiet didn't last too long though. The screams of people running out of the temple served as a reminder, that the war wasn't over yet.

Jaune and Cardin sat down with difficulty. They managed to see the people running, civilians. They were shocked and confused at the sight.

"Are those…Civilians? What…What's going on?" Cardin asked, much to Jaune's surprise. Jaune immediately realized that Cardin was just as confused as him.

Jaune struggled to stand up and stumbled towards his sword while Cardin stayed down, too tired and hurt to stand. Jaune took his sword and used it as a cane, he moved as quickly as he could towards the temple, fearing things were worse than he thought.

As he approached the temple's doors, Victoria came out running. "Jaune!".

"Victo…Arg!" Jaune tried to call for her but the pain didn't let him finish, he stubbled and almost fell to the ground, thankfully Victoria was quick enough to grab him and help him stand.

"Are you alright!?".

"Yeah, don't…worry. What's going on?" Jaune asked to a distraught Victoria.

"Civilians attacked the temple. And, Mother Emilia…She is out, she wants the book!".

"She escaped?!" Jaune asked, his tone showed worry.

Victoria was a bit surprised by Jaune's choice of words. "Escaped? But you said…" All the pieces started to connect in her mind, "You knew…We could have moved her to another place, but you wanted her at the temple…She wasn't there for her safety…She was your prisoner".

Jaune gave her a shamed look, it was all Victoria needed as confirmation. The two didn't have time to continue when an explosion coming from the temple startled them. From the smoke a figure emerged, leaping over them and landing in front of the temple.

"VIIIICTORIAAA!" Emilia yelled, a mad grin on her face. Her hair was messed up and her garment was torn. Blood dropping from her forehead. "Give me THE BOOK!". With wind dust on one scepter and fire dust on the other, Emilia shot a massive flame at Jaune and Victoria. Her sanity was gone and instead a ruthless rage took her over.

Jaune quickly dropped his sword and hugged Victoria, boosting his and her auras to protect them from the flames. It worked for a moment, but there was nothing aura could do with the heat and the flames were quickly consuming the oxygen around them. Jaune and Victoria were suffocating, to make matters worse, Jaune could barely keep his semblance going and was too weak to move out.

The situation was dire. Emilia kept on screaming, "GIVE ME THE BOOK!". She walked slowly towards them; the flames grown ever more intense. "VICTORI….." She was about to yell…until a mace came out flying and hit her on the side, making her drop her scepters and stopping the stream of flames.

Jaune and Victoria breathed heavily, as the oxygen started to come back. Fire surrounded them, but Jaune was able to stop his semblance and Victoria helped him grab his sword and move to a safer spot. They looked at the scene and saw Mother Emilia laying in the ground, spitting blood and from the opposite side, Cardin on his knees falling on all fours having used the rest of his force on that throw.

"You… _cough…_ Insolent piece of sh…." Emilia was cut off by a kick on the face and a group of civilians getting a hold on her.

Jaune, Victoria and Cardin were surprised and confused. Suddenly, Victoria was roped by the neck and pulled away from Jaune, making both of them fall to the ground.

From behind the temple, a mob of angry citizens came out, followed by squads of guards coming from down the mountain. They surrounded the area, pinning Jaune, Emilia and Victoria to the ground as well as showing the lookout witches together with other captured ones.

Victoria struggled to release herself, but it was useless.

"Victoria!" Jaune yelled.

The sounds of clapping caught their attention. "Great job, Cardin. You did it, you took the main witch down". The Major said, coming from behind the crowd. He walked with a smug smile on his face, admiring his victory.

"And even the traitor is here. Gotta say, your fight was quite fun to watch from the forest…Not too happy about the outcome though, Cardin". The Major said, belittling Cardin for his defeat.

Jaune realized what had happened. The witches were too busy with the guards they were caught by surprise by the angry mob of civilians the Major had brought with him. When the lookouts sent the signal fire, The Major knew more would come to their aid, so he planned an ambush while a separate group raided the temple.

"YOU BROUGHT AN ANGRY MOB?! Are you crazy!?" Cardin yelled.

"Well, Cardin, it was your idea". The Major replied.

"What?".

"You were the one that said that we needed the citizen's strength, didn't you? Well, here they are".

"I…No! I wanted their support! This…An angry mob?! You have any idea what you di…" Cardin tried to say but a man muffled his mouth and pinned him to the floor, tying his hands behind him as Cardin was of no use to the cause anymore.

"No! Give it back! NO!" Victoria pleaded as a guard took the book from her, having heard Emilia pointing out she had it.

"Major" The guard said as she handed the sacred Book of Shadows to the Major himself, who took it with a grin on his face and laughed.

He walked towards Mother Emilia and addressed her. "The 24hrs are up, witch! And you got your wish! The people has delivered me at your request!...To bring your punishment".

The crowd cheered, swinging their weapons and torches.

"You heretic, FOOL! I'll kill you; I'LL KILL YOU ALL FOR THIS!" Emilia kept threating, but the Major was in control.

"QUIET!" The Major answered, kicking her in the face. "You really think you are in a position to threaten ME?! Tonight, you are at my mercy, I'll be your executioner!".

The crowd once more cheered. The guards didn't though, they were on duty and many weren't so sure about these actions, but they still followed orders.

"Yeah!...And you know what? Forget the stake…no, I have something better in mind. An end more ironic for a sickening witch like you.", The major took the Book of Shadows and opened it on his hands. "With this book, I'll have the power to wipe you and your evil Coven from existence! You will meet your end at the hand of the same demonic magic you used to kill so many innocents!".

Victoria struggled to get free, "Mother Emilia!".

"You are disgracing our sacred text! UNHAND IT! I'LL END YOU!". Emilia yelled in anger. Enraged at the sight of the Major touching the ancient relic.

The Major pointed his finger at Mother Emilia's face. "NO! I'LL END YOU! THIS ALL ENDS HERE! WITCH!". The crowd cheered once more. "Shake before the last words you'll ever hear!", The Major said. With a smile on his face and hearing Victoria's pleads, the Major started reading the powerful spell from the Book of Shadows, "AND X-RAY SAID: SUCK MY X…ray….WHAT THE?!.

"That's…THAT'S NOT THE BOOK!" Emilia said in shock.

"WHAT IS THIS GARBAGE?!".

"GARBAGE?! How dare you?! THAT is a limited-edition novelization of the X-Ray and Vav movie!" Jaune said taunting the Major with a big smile, much to him and everyone else's confusion.

Jaune let out a whistle, signaling an ambush of witches lead by Don. The witches surrounded the angry mob and the guards, blasting some of them with wind to push them back and break their formation. They attacked the people holding Jaune, Victoria and Emilia, freeing the three of them.

The fight stopped, everyone aiming their weapons at each other. Victoria's squad had brought a captured Russel, while Violet's team held Sky and Dove. Cardin tried to stand up, but he was too tired to do so and fell once more, the witches surrounded him and kept him on the floor with his mouth still muffled.

Victoria was so glad of seeing her sister, she rushed at her and the two embraced.

Emilia was free and didn't waste time, she rushed at her scepters with the intend of retaliating. She would have gotten them, if Don hadn't kicked them away and placed his sword on her neck.

"No, no. Sorry, ma'am, I can't let you do that" Don said, capturing Emilia himself.

The witches were all surprised by this action. None of them understood what Don was doing. They came here to save their sisters and headmistress, yet, the man they were trusting now held a sword at Mother Emilia's neck? What was going on?

"Another insolent, swine!? Where is it?!" Emilia demanded to know.

"Yeah! Where is it!? That book must be burned!" The Major continued.

"HERETIC! That book belongs to the Coven! It belongs to ME!". Emilia replied.

"TELL ME WHERE IS IT!" The Major demanded.

"WOULD YOU TWO SHUT THE HELL UP?!" Jaune yelled, catching everyone's attention. He stood with his sword as a cane and while everyone saw him, he walked towards an old tree stump and sat down.

"Neither of you will ever find it. Only I know where it is. Not the guards, not the Witches, ME!". Jaune said as he addressed everyone present.

The witches were all confused. Violet and Victoria didn't understand what this meant. Jaune gave them a decoy, he had managed to take the Book of Shadows unnoticed.

"You…you took it?" Violet asked, a bit worried and conflicted. She trusted Jaune and she hid this from her. She wasn't sure of what to think. Was Victoria right all along? She started to be afraid of that…until Victoria put her hand on her shoulder, and gave her a smile, assuring her that everything was alright.

Jaune smiled at them as Victoria nodded at him. He then continued. "I took the book because I knew it was the only way for both sides to listen".

"Listen what?! How did that Book destroyed our city?!" A man from the angry mob yelled, but he was met with an angry look from Jaune.

"THEY DIDN'T CAUSE THIS!" Jaune said…and everyone listened.

"The Fall brought the Grimm…" Jaune said, much to CRDL's shock. He continued, "When Beacon fell, Grimm around Remnant became more hostile, those were the first waves of Grimm you got. Every other settlement got the same attacks".

"But the witches! They brought more!" The Major said, pointing his finger at Emilia much to her anger.

"No. YOU, brought more Grimm" Jaune said, shutting the Major up as the mob shifted their angry eyes at him. "Your laws. You have no idea of what you did. Making it illegal to express negative emotions will never reduce Grimm attacks, it increased them." Jaune said and the Major became more nervous. "Don't you see? You made a city full of tanks of negative emotions! You didn't let them release their anger, their sadness, they all had to repress them!...But…when you got rid of the Graveyard…that was the drop that spilled the glass".

The Major started to shiver.

Jaune continued, "You are starting to get it, aren't you? When you got rid of the Graveyard, you wanted to prevent people from being sad, but all you did was preventing them from grieving", He said, the Major took his eyes away from him in a bit of shame. The angry mob and the guards started to lower the weapons a little. Jaune continued, "When you lose someone…you feel an emptiness in your heart, it hurts, it's a heavy weight that makes every step more difficult…But you need to keep going. By taking away the Graveyard, you didn't let people grieve their dead, you didn't let them get closure…you didn't let them get rid of their guilt, their sorrow. You didn't let them move on. That's what brought the Grimm".

The Major was reluctant to believe it. "No…That's not true! My projects…. They are for the people! For the good of the city!".

"But you didn't let me cry for him…" A woman from the mob said, her hands shaking and tears coming from her eyes, "It's been so hard ever since my dad died…And I can't even visit his grave, you won't even let us have a picture and candles for him…why?! Why won't you?!" The woman said and the Major started to sweat. Guilt started to pressure him.

Violet stepped in, "Our rituals are to help the souls of your lost ones to move on. We didn't want to send Grimm to the city".

"But you didn't help either" Jaune interrupted her to her and all the witches' surprise.

"The Major's laws brought the Grimm to the city, but you made them stronger and their attacks even more frequent" Jaune said, shifting his arguments, to everyone's surprise, he was now blaming the Coven. Jaune approached a witch and took her hat. "You see this? Why did wear this? Huh? Have any of you ever wondered why?!" The witches all looked at each other. Jaune continued, "Wearing it for the ritual is one thing, is a ceremony, but going around dressed like this, what did you think was going to happen? Fear brings Grimm. The Major didn't start the witch rumors, you did, you caused panic in the city, of course the Grimm would follow it".

"But…That wasn't our intention, we just didn't want to be recognized" The witch replied before Jaune returned her hat. "We just wanted to help the people".

"No. You wanted to help their decease. Not even once did you ask the people for the items, not even once did you explain yourselves. You became a horror story and even worst; you stole the only things this people had left to remember their loves ones. You didn't allow them to grieve either".

The witches looked at each other in shame. All they wanted was to aid the city, to help stop what they thought was an injustice through their faith…and yet.

A guard broke formation, too focused on the discussion. "Wait…so who is to blame?".

"All of them" a person from the mob answered, "The Major and his stupid laws and the witches and their rituals! They both did this!".

"Is not that simple" Jaune said, walking around. "The thing you are not seeing is…None of you wanted this. You were all so focused on wanting to be right and wanting the other to be wrong that neither realized you both wanted the same thing". Jaune said, he looked at Don who gave him a proud smile. "The laws and the ritual were meant to protect the city, to help you all. They both wanted to save this city, to save their home. But neither was willing to listen to the other…This can be fix though, you can work to fix this now!… Is not too late" Jaune said, that last part made Cardin reflect on what Jaune told him earlier.

"So…there is no one to blame?" the guards said.

" _Sigh_ …There is someone…." Jaune said as he turned his face at Mother Emilia. He walked towards her. "You ready to talk? Or you want me to keep going?".

"Hehe…Go on, clever boy. Enlighten us".

"Mother Emilia?" a witch said shyly.

Jaune saw her with disgust, "This morning's attack was because of her" Jaune declared to everyone's shock. He kept addressing her, Don lifting her head with his sword to make her look at Jaune. "You knew the panic the witches were causing. You knew what that was doing to the city. That's why you sent them last night" He said, the witches all with their eyes wide open. "You ordered them to attack City Hall and put a time limit on the Major, knowing that would cause chaos. You knew panic would bring even more Grimm. You knew the people would riot. You wanted it to happen so that the Grimm would attack and kill them all. Am I wrong?!".

The witches were in disbelief, Mother Emilia couldn't have manipulated them into destroying the city. She was their loving headmistress…I was impossible.

"You are very wrong, boy. Sisters! Do not believe this heretic's lies! You know that I would never…"

"To get a beautiful garden, you first need to cut the weed" Victoria interrupted, much to Emilia's anger. "That's what you said before you attacked me. Right after you murdered so many people…It's true, you wanted to send a Grimm horde to kill the citizens! All because they didn't see things the same as you!". Victoria said, angry tears on her eyes. The other witches were in shock, they all respected Mother Emilia like their own mother, but they also saw Victoria as their big sister, if she was saying these terrible things…it had to be true.

Violet stood next to her sister, "You used us. We trusted you. We all thought we were doing good. All we wanted was to give peace to our city, our family! This is not what the Coven stood for! We followed you because you showed us love, how could you do this?!".

Emilia started to chuckle. The sisters were horrified and heartbroken at this betrayal. And the mob was becoming angrier.

"YOU KILLED OUR PEOPLE!".

"THEY KILLED THEMSELVES! It's the beauty of it! Your own hatred, that same hatred that killed Saint Aradia. The same ignorance that gave power to corrupt idiots like him! It's the same thing that will kill you all!". Emilia proclaimed with a smile on her face.

Jaune noticed how Cardin was shaking, trying his best to free himself. "Let him go!".

The witches let go of him and Jaune released his mouth. "Jaune! The mob!".

Jaune turned and saw the mob getting angrier and out of control at Emilia's words. His eyes got wide with realization.

"You have to get out of here!". Jaune said, but the mob didn't listen. Guards preventing them from attacking Emilia.

His aura had the time to heal his wounds. Jaune was able to walk fast at the Major, who was in a state of denial at his responsibility in the deaths of so many.

"Major, you have to tell them to go back to the city. NOW!".

"No…I….Im the Major…They came here to support me because I'm right! I came here to prove you that I'm a good leader!" The Major said, starting to panic.

Jaune pulled him by the collar, "Yeah, I knew you would come! Had you not I was going to take her to your place anyways! What I wasn't counting on was on you being stupid enough to bring an angry mob to a Grimm infested forest!".

"W…what?".

" _GRRRRRAAAAUUUU!_ "

"AAAAAHHHHH!" Screams were heard as Beowolves attacked. Soon enough, the entire plateau was swarmed by Grimm attracted by the anger, fear, distrust and sorrow of the people around.

The Beowolves brutally ravaged every person around them. The mob entered a panic, some tried to fight back but the terror was too much for them to think straight.

The Beowolves weren't the only concern. Other Grimm had joined them and the panic just grew exponentially as Ursas launched people around and Creeps tackled them.

The guards opened fire to protect the civilians, but the Grimm horde was overwhelming them.

A civilian was in panic, walking in a shock induced trance. "No, no, no, no, no….It was the witches….it was them…they did…" He was about to said until he was startled as a Beowolf jumped on a witch in front of him.

"HELP ME!" She yelled as she held the beast with her staff on its mouth, barely holding it back. The Beowolf frenetically tried to claw the witch and tear her apart, all the while, the man sat on the ground helplessly watching as the witch begged for her life, too terrified to even move.

"PLEASE! NOO!" She yelled, her staff starting to crack under the strength of the Beowolf's jaw. The man saw shacking at the horrific scene…until a sword pierced the Beowolf's head. Jaune killed the beast and immediately turned at the man, who started to crawl backwards away from the scene, not noticing the Beowolf standing behind him.

"AHHHHH!" The man yelled as the Beowolf grabbed his head and was ready to bite him in the neck. Fortunately for him, Victoria shot a fire ball at the creature, freeing the man from its grasp.

"Run away!" Victoria said to the man who just nodded at her and started running for his life.

The witches, the guards and the mob all fought the creatures as best as they could, but their fear only made the Grimm more and more aggressive.

Don ran towards Sky, Dove and Russel and immediately cut their ropes. "Stand up! We need you here!", he shouted as the witches gave their weapons back to them. The guys didn't hesitate and joined the fight immediately.

Victoria used her semblance momentarily and leaped in the air to where everyone could see her. "COVEN! PROTECT THE CIVILIANS!". She said then fell back down and rejoined the fight.

Jaune defended as many people as he could. His aura gave him back some of his strength but was still struggling. He quickly turned back and saw Cardin's mace still on the floor. He turned and saw Cardin crawling; his mouth was free but his arms were still tied up. Jaune folded his shield and took Cardin's mace, running at him at full speed.

An Ursa took notice of the vulnerable Cardin who was trying his best to get away from it. The beast charged at him without hesitation, even trampling other Grimm away to get to its prey. Fear took over Cardin, but he couldn't even blink, his eyes stayed wide as the beast charged at him. But to his surprise, Jaune slammed the Ursa under the jaw with his mace and then cut its head off with his sword, saving Cardin's life.

Jaune dropped Cardin's mace next to him and quickly ran behind him to cut him loose.

"Get up!" Jaune said…but Cardin stayed down, ashamed. "Come on! STAND UP!".

"You should have let it…I'm a monster like them…I don't…"

"WE DON'T HAVE TIME FOR THIS!" Jaune yelled at him. "Cardin! You are a huntsman too! You have a responsibility! You owe it to this people! STAND UP AND FIGHT!" Jaune said, shocking Cardin who looked at him straight in the eyes. Jaune offered him a hand and saw him with a serious face. "Is not too late, Cardin". Cardin smiled and Jaune smiled back and with a quick move, Cardin took Jaune's hand and bright aura started covering him. Jaune used his semblance on him, acceleration the regeneration of his aura and healing him a bit in the process. Revigorated, Cardin stood up and the former rivals charged together, to protect the ones that needed them.

The battle kept going and panic kept growing, but Jaune and Cardin cut and smashed their way through the battlefield, protecting as many people they could in the process.

The witches and the guards fought together, bullets and fire balls flying around, united by a common enemy.

The mob, once angry and blood thirsty, was now cowardly spreading, many were taking any chance they could to run back to the city, many others stood and fought the Grimm horde…many others fell to it.

Jaune and Cardin split up, covering more ground. Cardin saw his team on the distance. They were all exhausted, Russel hadn't even recovered his aura yet. A pack of beowolves approached team CRDL, ready to launch themselves at them. Russel could barely move and soon he was covered in fear as the a beowolf leaped at him, clearly the easiest prey. To Russel's surprise, Cardin stood in front of him, slamming the beast and every other beowolf that tried to attack him. The team was stunned, Cardin was just as exhausted and weakened as them, but he kept on fighting. They had been following him for a long time, always worry of his decent after the fall. They were all used to seeing Cardin push himself and them to their limits out of sheer hatred and petty pride…but this was different. They could all see Cardin wasn't fighting for his revenge anymore, he was fighting for them, he had never done something like that before, specially not at Beacon. As Cardin kept fighting the horde, he was starting to get overwhelmed, when gun fire from Sky's rifle and Dove's gun-sword took down the Beowolves around him. Team CRDL smiled at each other, they had fought together many times before…but maybe, this was the first time they fought as a real team, following a leader that truly inspired them to give it their all.

Emilia crawled amongst the chaos, quickly approaching her scepters. Violet saw her in the commotion and rushed at her. As Emilia took her scepters and stood up proudly, she thought she had a chance of actually escaping the scene, but that delusion was broken when Violet hit her in the face with her staff.

Emilia stood in anger at this insolence. "You….Always the trouble maker, Violet! Can't you understand I'm finally bringing peace to the dead? Can't you see I'm doing this for our family!?".

"You are just causing more pain. You are making more innocent people suffer. Our family? You don't deserve to call us that. Not after what you did. You are just a rotten hag, a murderous sinner! May the gods' light forgive you and their shadows have mercy on you…because I won't". Violet said, looking down on Emilia, enraging her.

Emilia and Violet battled. The flurry of fire balls from Emilia's scepters were deviated by Violet's staff who choose to get close and personal, pushing the scepters away and making her miss every shot. Violet quickly noticed that Emilia didn't have any aura left, it was an easy fight for her. She hit her multiple times with her staff, slamming her legs, face and stomach repeatedly before pushing her with a wind blow. Violet quickly switched to lighting dust and with a lightning bolt, Emilia dropped her scepters stunned. To finish things off, Violet swung her staff and launched Emilia against the walls of the Temple, defeating the disgraceful former headmistress.

Jaune found himself surrounded with Grimm. His shield up and his sword ready. He blocked an attack and slashed another Beowolf, before turning quickly to block another beast and stab a fourth one. Three more Beowolves launched at him at once, he managed to stab one and block the other but the third was about to bite his head off, if it wasn't for Don's blade. As he stepped back, Jaune found himself back to back with his master.

"Having fun, kid?".

"You have no idea, haha".

"Atta boy! Let's show them what we got!".

Master and Apprentice launched their assault, swinging their swords and shields in sync. A beowolf attacked Don and Jaune blocked it, a Creep launched at Jaune and Don slashed it. The beasts leaped from all directions and the pair did not yield. Jaune and Don put their shields together and with their steel wall up trampled the Grimm in front of them and got free of their siege.

Jaune and Don rushed across the battlefield, killing every Grimm on their path. Fighting as one, they both swapped to their spears and ravaged the Grimm. Noone could stop the duo.

"Not bad, lad!".

"Can't keep up, old man?"

"HA! Get on my level! Kid!".

"Let's do it!".

The spears were shift, their blades agile and deathly. The swarm of Grimm was being mown down but the spinning blades. Jaune and Don smiled, even the Grimm would learn to fear the smile of the Knight Errants. An Ursa Major rushed at them, but ever so fearless, Jaune and Don stood up to it, their spears stabbing its neck at the same time, crossing inside the beast's flesh and ending its life.

A guard rushed to the Major, he was in shock talking to himself while hiding behind a tree.

"Sir! We have to get you out of here, right now!".

"It's…It's my fault…It was all my fault….It was…" The Major kept mumbling.

"SIR!" The guard tried to bring him back to his senses.

Suddenly…the floor started to shake. The entire mountain trebled. From the distance, a massive figure emerged. The creature was huge yet slender and long. The immense centipede like Grimm came out from higher up in the mountain and stood out from the canopy of the woods. It extended as if reaching for the moon itself. And without a warning, it let out an imponent screech, so loud, even the Grimm stopped and turned to look at it.

" _SSCCREEEEEEEEEEECHHHH_ ".

Everyone saw the beast horrified…everyone, but Emilia.

"hehehehe. HAHAHAHAHAH!" She laughed, finally snapping and losing the last bits of sanity she had left. "IT'S AWAKE! HAHAHA!". Violet turned at her, seeing her ramble like a lunatic. "I found it months ago, dormant in the depths of the mountain" She said with her face down, she quickly lifted it with a massive maniacal grin. "The souls of the dead will consume that sinful city!". Violet was shocked with the realization, this was what Emilia was working on, this is what she wanted to accomplish, create enough chaos to awaken this massive beast. "SLAUGTHER THEM! MIGHTY SCOLOPENDRA! END THEM ALL! HAHAHAH!".

The Scolopendra screeched once more, sending both the mob and some of the guards rushing in a panic back to the city, the Grimm horde swarming after them. The Scolopendra ran down the mountain, attracted by the fear of the city. It was as if a train speeded out of control down the mountain. A vicious hunger for death and destruction.

The plateau soon was almost empty, only a few guards, the witches, the Major and the huntsmen were left. Everyone else ran back to the city, and the Grimm horde followed.

Emilia kept laughing. Against all odds, she felt triumphant. "It's done, hahaha. The city won't survive the night. Hehehe".

Everyone gathered in front of the temple, with some guards and witches tending to the injured survivors.

"We have to contact the guards in the city!" Jaune said, trying to get the guards around to send a message to their troops.

"They won't get in time, there are still riots across the city and…." A guard tried to explain but was soon shut down.

"Do as he say!" The Major ordered, in terror still but making an effort to swallow his pride.

Jaune and the Major exchanged a look, only nodding at each other. The Major handed the situation to Jaune. His status, his public image, none of that mattered anymore, The Major only wanted his city saved.

The guards followed orders and contacted all forces, ordering every unit to rush south of the city and all forces stationed close by already were ordered to evacuate the area and prepare for the attack.

"We have to go down and fight as well. Guards, follow me and Don. Violet, Victoria, lead the Coven forces" Jaune started instructing.

Cardin and his team approached him, "We are going too". The two former rivals looked at each other. "I won't let you have all the glory; you know?" Cardin said with a smile which Jaune returned.

A witch intervened, "We won't make it. It would take us 2 hours to get down to the city on foot. The Grimm would have destroyed everything by then!".

Jaune realized this, but he already had a plan. "Victoria. How many people can you use your semblance on at once?".

"Me? I…I've done 4 people max, but I don't have much aura left, I don't know…" Victoria responded but Jaune interrupted.

"I'll help you out with that. Ok, everyone, grab your things. I need some people to stay with the injured, the rest follow me!". Jaune instructed and the troops started to get ready. "Coven, gather up!".

"No, you won't!" Emilia said, getting the attention of her former sisters. Emilia grabbed dirt and pressed it on her hand angrily. "Sisters! Can't you see?! All I did, everything I did was in the name of our lords. I gave all of you a home, but now that home has a plague. If you go down there, you'll die with that scum…But if you stand with me, we can make a new city, a city without sin, a city without corruption, discrimination and hatred! Can't you see? I'm fighting for the good of the people!".

"SHUT UP!" Violet yelled in anger. "How dare you!? Fighting for the good of the people? Are you kidding me? No, you haven't…None of us have…" She said in anger and frustration, her fist clenched and small tears coming out. Violet raised her face and addressed her sisters. "Jaune is the only that has been fighting for the people! But us? We are responsible for this! The Coven was meant to bring peace to the dead, you really think this is peace?!" She asked and the Coven all were ashamed. Violet continued. "Sisters, we owe this city, we have sinned and it's time we repay them!".

The sisters were all thinking the same way. The had a desire to repent for their actions even though none of this was their intention.

"Violet is right" Victoria stepped in. "We are the sisters of Saint Agnes and the Coven of Saint Aradia. We have a duty to this city. They need us. We swore to serve them as our saints once did".

"By following this stupid brat?! You want to put your faith in him over your gods appointed headmistress?!". Emilia replied…but her arguments fell in deft ears.

A witch approached. "We trust Violet and Victoria. They are right, we owe this city. If they say we should follow the huntsmen, we will. They haven't let us down yet. They earned our faith".

The witches all looked with determination. They would fight for what they believed was right and were sure Violet and Victoria would lead them on the right path.

Jaune smiled at the sisters before turning once more at the defeated Mother Emilia, "Arrest her already. We have to get going", he said and two guards followed suit.

"I'll stay with the injured and the prisoner" The Major said, much to Jaune's surprise. "Give me a few guards and I'll take them down the mountain…Jaune, I'm begging you. Please save my city".

Jaune looked at him with a determine face. "I will".

* * *

Without any other delay, the witches and the guards gathered around, by combining Victoria and Jaune's semblances, all witches were able to ride their staves as brooms, flying through the night sky and carrying the guards and huntsmen with them.

Jaune was riding with Victoria, boosting her aura all the way back to the city. He had to keep focus, but he was visibly struggling.

"Jaune!".

"I'm fine. Don't worry. Just hurry up" Jaune said, he didn't want to worry Victoria, but in truth, Jaune was at his limit. He had been using his semblance and receiving damage to his aura all night. At this point he was forcing himself to keep his semblance up as to not make the rest of the people fall from the sky.

From the sky, the terror of the city could be seen as the Grimm swarm had already reached it and the Scolopendra's rampage was devastating everything in its path.

Everyone saw in horror as the Grimm slaughtered the guard troops and attacked the still fleeing citizens.

"They aren't well organized!" Jaune said, referring to the guard troops that were just arriving to the scene and firing wildly.

"I'll take care of it! Take charge!" Cardin said before Violet flew off with him. Jaune took the rest of the troops straight to the middle of the battlefield.

The guards panicking and firing at everything that moved were completely ineffective. The Grimm outnumbered them and the Scolopendra's presence had them extremely intimidated.

The guards were startled when Violet dropped Cardin off and he ran towards them.

"Everyone, line up! We are pushing forward!"

"Why should we listen to you!?".

Cardin grabbed the guard by the neck and put his face close to him, mad eyes sending shivers to his spin. "Because if you don't, I'll break your ribs one by one. NOW FORM UP!".

"YES SIR!".

* * *

In the middle of the swarm, the witches and the guards dropped on the street and immediately started their assault.

"Victoria! Get the civilians!". Jaune instructed.

"COVEN! Escort the citizens! Evacuate the area!".

"Guards! With me!"

"ROGER!".

The Grimm horde was devastating the city. Beowolves and Ursas ran on the streets. The commotion had attracted even more Grimm from around the forest. Boarbastusks rolled around trampling everything on their path.

Jaune and his forces swarmed the rampaging Grimm. As they moved, Jaune recognized a screeching sound coming from the black sky. He immediately lifted his shield and yelled at everyone around. "Get down!".

Nevermores flew by, shooting their feathers around before taking off. The bladed feathers got stuck on Jaune's shield, many others weren't so lucky.

"Keep pushing!" He ordered. He couldn't allow the troops to panic.

Jaune and Don ran and slayed as many Grimm as they could, clearing street after street while they pushed their way to the main threat.

Manticores arrived at the scene, shooting fire balls from the sky. Jaune was ready this time, instructing his troop to take cover in time to remain unharmed. Sky sniped a Manticore and Don threw his spear at another.

Before they could regroup, Jaune heard the flock of Nevermores approaching again. They didn't have time to take cover again but luckily, the winged beasts were taken down by explosions, fire balls and ice beams.

"Victoria!"

"I split up the Coven, you need range support. Now let's move!". Victoria said and the troops of guards and witches moved on.

The swarm was tenacious. The huntsmen ran in front of the troops taking down as many Grimm as they could, with the guards giving them ground support and the witches dealing with enemies at a distance.

The troops rushed until they reached an open area of the market, and in the middle, the imponent Scolopendra rampaged everything in its sight.

" _SSSSCCRREEEEEECCHHHHH!_ ".

The beast was extremely erratic and blood thirsty. Grimm around it were being crushed by its mad rampage.

From the street nearby, a bullet storm was being fired at the Scolopendra. Cardin and the bulk of the guard forces had arrived and started firing at the beast. Bullets flew mercilessly, but not a single one made a dent on the plated hide of the Scolopendra. The creature was armored, it was essentially bulletproof.

Soon enough, other guard troops arrived from other directions and joined in the fight, however this were unorganized and stood too close to the beast. The Scolopendra rushed at them prompting Jaune's squad and Cardin's forces to follow the creature to try to protect the guards.

The Scolopendra slaughter them as if they were nothing. Its hundred legs stomped the guards, its mandibles grabbed multiples of them at once and effortlessly cut them in half.

Its attention was finally caught by the rushing assault of Jaune's forces. Victoria and her witches created a stone wall to protect the guards from the rampaging Grimm. This enraged it, how dare they get between it and its prey.

"In coming!" Jaune yelled as the Scolopendra rushed at them. The troops managed to disperse and avoid the attack, many however, Jaune included were launched by the Grimm's force pushing them back.

Bullets kept flying and the beast didn't care for them, but it was enraged even more when a flurry of lightning bolts felt from behind it.

Violet had brought the rest of the witch Coven; the evacuation had ended successfully. A team from the mountain fight had actually made it to the city, they managed to free the witches that were captured on the Cathedral, reinforcements had arrived…but would it be enough?

"Kid!" Don rushed at Jaune's side, he shook his head and grabbed Don's shoulder.

"I'm fine!".

Lighting wasn't doing anything to the creature either, just getting it even more angry.

"SCREEEEEECHHHHHH!".

The powerful sound was painful and even broken some windows. Answering the call, the swarm of Grimm rampaged from all over the city to the middle of the market. The rage of the Scolopendra only meant one thing for them, prey.

Don took the guards, Russel, Sky and Dove with him to fight the Grimm together with Violet's witches. Meanwhile, Cardin's troops and Victoria's Coven followed Jaune on their assault against the Scolopendra.

Jaune now spear in hand lead the forces on a swarming offense. But nothing was working, the beast was immune to anything. Fire balls, bullets, slashes, lighting bolts. Nothing seemed to be able to pierce its thick plated hide. Jaune's forces surrounded the beast and tried to cut its legs, but once more this resulted ineffective. Jaune was forced to retreat, ordering the guards to protect the witches who were firing every type of dust they had in hand.

"Nothing works!" Jaune said in frustration.

The Scolopendra whipped its tail on the troops, slamming everything in its path and launching the unfortunate ones that couldn't evade it. Jaune tackled Victoria to the ground, saving her life but getting hit with one of the legs of the beast.

"JAUNE!".

Jaune hit a food stand, his aura barely protecting him. It wasn't going to last him much longer, another strike like that would be the end…but he had to keep trying.

As the beast moved to continue its attack, Jaune noticed the movement of the plated armor and realized, there were gaps in it. He just needed to make it stretch enough. Without delay, he rushed at his forces.

"Cardin! Rush north! Bait it to you! Victoria, Coven! Follow me!".

Cardin followed the orders, leading the troops and forming them up in front of the beast, marching backwards making sure the Scolopendra would follow.

Jaune took the witches with him behind the beast and sent Victoria to contact Violet's forces.

As soon as the Scolopendra rushed to trample Cardin's troops, Jaune gave the signal.

"NOW!" He shouted and immediately, his witches fired ice beams at the tail of the creature, freezing it and locking it in place.

The Scolopendra pulled itself by inertia, being taken by surprise at the ice wall. Immediately, Violet and Victoria's forces froze the head of the beast as it was extending at its maximum reach trying to devour the guards.

The plated armor was stretched and the gaps on it were exposed.

"ATTACK!" Jaune shouted and rushed with his spear, followed by Don's huntsmen and guard forces. The warriors fired and pierced the exposed flesh of the Grimm which screeched in pain and moved erratically trying to free itself. The assault was brutal and the forces were determinate to end this monster's life right there and then. It took them a while but finally, the army managed to cut the Grimm in half.

Jaune and Don stood breathing heavily as the two halves of the Grimm laid motionless.

Russel, Dove and Sky laughed incredulous. They did it, they had slayed the beast.

The troops cheered for their victory and the witches hugged their dear sisters. Violet and Victoria embraced each other.

Cardin ran searching for Jaune, he saw him and his master standing in front of the beast and tried to approach them

Don was relieved, the battle was over, they had done it, they saved the city…then why wasn't Jaune smiling?

Jaune looked in shock as black goo came out of the two halves on the Scolopendra. It was a massive puddle that kept coming out. Jaune had had his fair share of fights, but never had he ever seen a Grimm bleeding. Was that even possible?...No, Grimm don't bleed…This was, something else.

"Jaune?".

"Retreat…" Jaune said.

"What?"

The legs of the Scolopendra started to move, each side independent of one another. There was a squishy sound coming from each half, as if something was coming out of them.

"RETREAT!" Jaune yelled, alarming everyone around.

The two halves of the Scolopendra started moving independently and from the open wounds a new head and a new tail came out. What started as one massive monster was now two. The Scolopendras broke free of the ice walls and screeched in anger, prompting everyone to run away.

In the commotion, the forces split up in two and ran to different streets. The Scolopendras followed them, blood thirsty and extremely enraged.

Jaune and Don ran to one street, Violet, Sky and Russel ended up running with them, splitting from their loved ones in the chaos. Victoria, Cardin and Dove ended up in another street. Both parties ran as fast as they could with their troops, all in terror as the Scolopendras followed them viciously.

The path was rough, many other Grimm were still swarming them and flying around and they had no problem hunting down the Scolopendra's left overs.

Jaune ran as fast as he could, he turned around for a moment and saw how the Scolopendra approached them quickly, crawling up and down the buildings as it stalked its prey, trampling every Grimm in its path. It was ruthless. He was starting to panic himself and when he turned his head to the front again, he was met with the arm of a Beowolf, hitting him and throwing him on his back.

* * *

On the next street, Cardin and Dove ran with the crowd, many pushing each other in the frenzy. Dove fell to the ground and Cardin rushed to help him stand. That's when he saw Victoria, she was staying behind trying to encourage people to run and even directing others to hide in the alleyways. Cardin couldn't believe it, this was a situation in which no one would have blamed her for leaving and running for her life, and still there she stood, helping to her bitter end no matter the danger. The faunus girl was braver than him. She chose to stay and fight.

A boarbatusk rolled over to attack Cardin as he was trying to get Dove up, he had to let go of him and drop him again just to block the attack and protect his friend. Cardin didn't have time to grab his mace, so he risked it and tried to stop the rolling Grimm barehanded. He managed to grab it by the tusks and force it to stop when a second one surprised him and hit him from the side. Down on the ground a Beowolf launched at him but the Grimm was shocked by electricity. Victoria rushed to his aid, killing the Beowolf and shooting lightning bolts at the boarbatusks, saving his life.

"Stand up!" Victoria said, offering her hand to a surprised Cardin.

Cardin was hesitant, she was a faunus. Even before the fall he didn't have the best view of them, and afterwards he had nothing but hatred towards them…and still, he owed this faunus his life. He took her hand and pulled her, making her fall front first to the floor, Victoria was surprised by this, but a claw barely missed the back of her head. Victoria turned around and saw Cardin fist fighting a Beowolf, punching it and blocking its attacks with his arms. The beast clawed him many times, not giving him a chance to reach for his mace, but thankfully, Dove stabbed the Grimm and killed it.

Cardin turned at Victoria with a smug smile, "We are even now, faunus". He said before a fireball barely touched his cheek and flew behind him, hitting a flying Nevermore that was about to rip Cardin apart.

"Haha. I don't think so, human" Victoria replied as she stood up with a smug smile of her own.

The three turned around and saw the Scolopendra getting extremely close, prompting them to resume their escape.

* * *

The beowolf was ready to slice Jaune with its claws, but Don stabbed it in the back with his spear just in time.

"Kid!". Don yelled as he rushed to help Jaune stand, Russel running to help him as well.

Violet had ordered her witches to create walls to stop the Scolopendra, which worked at first as the creature tried to go through them in anger, eventually it learned from its mistake and just crawled over the walls. They couldn't stop it, but they did slow it down.

"We have to keep moving!" Sky said but Jaune just looked at them shaking his head.

"We are driving it deeper into the city, if we don't figure out how to kill it, we will just be making things worse!" He said.

Violet ran towards the group. "We can't trap it. It's too strong!".

Jaune tried to think but he didn't have time at all, Grimm started swarming them. Manticores flew down and launched their attack. The team had no choice but to fight them off. Violet pushed them all back with wind dust as Don, Sky and Russel leaped forward to stab and slice the beasts. Another Manticore flew by and shot fireballs at Violet, but Jaune managed to cover her with his boosted aura. As the beast started stalking the two, toying with its prey, Jaune had his spear ready, the blade slightly down, he swung it in position for a thrusting stab but was surprised by the sight. The blade had ignited on fire, Jaune didn't understand what was happening but after a bit of thinking realized that a fireball from the Manticore most have hit the blade…but why was it burning? Jaune's eyes got wide as he pieced everything together, the blade was covered on the black goo from the Scolopendra's body, the substance was extremely inflammable…and that thing was filled with it. The Manticore launched and Jaune stabbed it with his flaming spear, killing it instantly.

"That's it…" Jaune said, a plan already forming in his head.

The Scolopendra had breached the last of the walls and was rushing towards its prey. Jaune realized they ran out of time, but there was hope, they could still win this fight.

"Don! Take Russel and Sky. Get to the end of the street and round up as many troops as you can. Guards at ground level, witches in the high ground, tell them to get fire dust ready!" Jaune instructed.

"Where are you going?!".

"I need Cardin and Victoria! Violet! With me!" Jaune said as he ran to an alleyway connecting with the next street.

The alleyway was long and interconnected with other paths, it was dark and filled with Grimm, but if they wanted to succeed, they had to fight their way through.

Violet shot fireballs at the Grimm, providing cover for Jaune as he charged with his spear and impaled and slashed his way through. A Beowolf came from an alley on his right and slashed him on the shoulder but Violet killed it allowing Jaune to stab another one coming from his left, then hit one on the front. As they reached the end of the alleyway, an Alpha Beowolf stood on their way but Jaune charged, ready to face the beast. Jaune thrusted the creature forcing it back, then spun the spear and hit it with the staff before swinging again and slashed it with the blade, Violet pushed it back with a wind blow and Jaune finished it off with a javelin throw, sending the Grimm's corpse away to the next street before running and retrieving his spear.

"Victoria! Cardin!" Jaune yelled as Victoria, Cardin and Dove ran from the Scolopendra.

Jaune rushed at them and made Victoria use her semblance once more on all of them, boosted by what little aura Jaune had left. They used this to fly further as fast as they could, gaining a bit of time to discuss the plan.

They landed almost at the end of the street, the Scolopendra rushing but a few minutes behind.

"I know how to kill them. Those things are weak to fire". Jaune said, explaining the plan to his allies.

"But we have been shooting fireballs at it all night! It doesn't do anything!" Victoria said, but Jaune kept going.

"The hide is unaffected, but the goo inside is super inflammable. I saw it myself. We need to rip them apart again and ignite them immediately, that's how we'll kill it".

Don ran from the end of the street. "Kid! Bad news. We don't have enough fire dust. I had the guys ask every witch left and they don't have much. There might be enough to kill one, but not the other".

Jaune pondered. "Then we'll kill them at the same time. We need a way to move them around".

"I'll take care of it, if you help me out" Victoria said.

Violet then followed, "They are smart. We tried to block them with walls, but they learned quickly, they aren't just mindless beasts. If they can learn they won't fall for the same bating trick again".

"Then we'll adapt too. Same principle, different mechanics". Jaune said as he drew the battle plan on the floor. "The flesh is weaker than the armor, but it is still thick, we can't just shoot the fire dust, it won't be strong enough".

"Put it in my mace" Cardin said, much to everyone's surprise. "My mace is full of explosive dust. Put all the fire dust you have in it; I'll throw it at them and your witches can ignite it".

"Boom. Hahaha. I love it" Don said, excited.

Jaune smiled and stood up "Get it done then!", he instructed and deployed his forces for a finally assault.

* * *

As the Scolopendras approached, Don and Jaune ordered the guards around, while Violet and Victoria got the witches ready for battle.

They stood around a plaza in the market. They had to win in this place, this was their last chance. A bit further was the border between the restricted evacuated area and the urban area of the city, if they failed to slay the Scolopendras here, they would rampage in the city and kill hundreds of innocent civilians in the process.

As instructed, the guards were stationed at ground level, while the witches took the high ground up in the buildings. The Coven gave Cardin all the fire dust they had left, filling his mace as much as they could and as fast as possible. Russel, Sky and Dove stood with the guards, nervous but ready for battle. The approaching Scolopendras could be heard clearly, it was now or never.

Jaune and Victoria stood next to each other as Violet rushed to the roof of a building with her sisters and Don formed up with the ground troops.

The ground started to shake as the first Scolopendra arrived to the battlefield. The beast wasted no time in launching at the guards who opened fire at it. Russel slashed it and Sky fired at it, none of which was effective but they already knew that, all they had to do was make time for the other monster to arrive.

The Scolopendra attacked erratically, swinging its tail around and launching people in every direction. The witches provided ranged support, summoning stone walls to protect the ground forces and slowing it down by freezing its legs.

Eventually the second Scolopendra appeared. Don and Dove lead the assault on it, trying their best to drive it closer to its brother. They opened fire and the Scolopendra rushed at them, forcing them to split up around and regroup behind it. Don stabbed the beast many times, but the hide was too strong.

The two forces pushed the beast close to each other. It was a difficult task, but it was their only chance.

Once the Scolopendras where close enough, the pieces were all gathered, and the offense began. Jaune and Victoria flew over the battlefield and plummeted down on the first Scolopendra. With Jaune pushing himself to his limits, Victoria's semblance was able to affect the massive Grimm, which started to lose its grasp over the ground and float. Victoria and Jaune held hands as Victoria pushed their weightless bodies with a wind blow and launched both to the second Scolopendra. The beast was frenetic but soon enough, Victoria was able to touch it and make it float as well.

The two massive Grimm started to levitate uncontrollably, aggressively moving and attacking in a frenzy as neither could understand what was happening.

"PUSH!" Jaune signaled and the troops followed his orders. Jaune, Don, Russel, Dove, Sky and Victoria all pushed with the rest of the guards with all the strength they had left. The Scolopendras kept attacking in an enraged frenzy, striking them all many times with their legs. Jaune was struggling, he barely had any aura left, but he needed to keep Victoria's semblance boosted or she wouldn't be able to hold both Grimm on her own.

The forces gave it their all until finally, they managed to slam the Grimm together. The enraged Scolopendras attacked each other holding to one another, an unexpected result but one extremely beneficial to the plan.

"ICE!" Violet yelled and the witches followed her orders. They shot ice beams at the tails of both Grimm, locking them in the ground.

The ground forces pushed the Grimm up with all their strength. At this time, Cardin ran as fast as he could, mace in hand. The ground forces had left a path for him and he rushed through it.

The Scolopendras were being pushed to the air, the lock on their tails made them stretch as they reached their higher limit, exposing the weak points of the armored plate.

"FALL BACK!" Jaune yelled, still holding Victoria's hand to keep her boosted and running away from the Scolopendras as fast as possible. The rest of the troops did as order and ran away, putting as much distance from the beast as they could.

" _SCREEEEECCCCHHHH_!".

Cardin threw his mace with all his strength. This was it; he couldn't miss this shot. As the mace flew the Scolopendras started to fall down once more, the plates were slowly closing off, the window of opportunity was getting smaller and smaller and suddenly…the mace hit the flesh.

"FIRE!" Violet yelled and lighting bolts came down from the roof of the surrounding buildings. A thunder storm that all connected with the mace at the right time, igniting the dust inside it.

" _BOOOOOOOM_ ".

The explosion was massive, it pushed every ground trooper to the floor. Jaune even hit his head when he fell.

The explosion blew up entire plates from the Scolopendras, and the fire dust ignited their exposed black goo. The beasts busted into flames from the inside out. Fire came out of every single gap and eventually the flames expelled from their mouths.

" _SCCCCCCREEEECHhhhh..h.._ " The Scolopendras let out one last screech, before turning into ash and banishing.

They did it, this time they were sure. The city was safe, they had won. Everyone cheered and tears came out as the heroes had truly gotten their victory.

Jaune stood up, smiling. He saw how everyone was jumping around in joy, celebrating their achievement. He stumbled a little and almost felt when his master came in and helped him stay standing.

"Easy there, champ" Don said, proud of his student.

"Hehe…How was that for a squire?".

"Um, not too shabby if I say so myself, haha" Don replied.

"That's…good to hea…" Jaune tried to say, his aura finally breaking as he almost fell once more.

This time Victoria helped Don keep Jaune standing as the poor guy struggled to stay conscious.

The troops' celebration was cut short, when the cord was broken and the rioters approached the scene.

"THE WITCHES! THEY BROUGHT THOSE THINGS HERE! LOOK AT OUR CITY! IN RUINS!". They said in anger.

Victoria was about to yell at the angry crowd, but Cardin was faster.

"Shut your mouth!" He said, confronting the rioter. "The witches stood with us, without them, your sorry ass would be dead right now!"

"The only ones who should be dead, are them!". They said but were soon interrupted by an approaching voice.

"Not they are not" Everyone turned around to see Major Cornsilk escorted by guards and witches.

The Major addressed the crowd. "Ladies and gentlemen, tonight's tragedy is no one's responsibility but mine. The blood spilled tonight is in my hands. The sisters standing in front of you fought with everything they had, they even went against their own headmistress out of love for this city and its citizen".

"You said you would kill them!".

"AND NOW IM SAYING I WONT! They had nothing to do with the Grimm!" The Major proclaimed, but Violet approached him and touched his shoulder.

"There is no need for that, Major. Thank you, but we are responsible for this" Violet turned at the crowd. "People of Sevillana. You must know it was never our intension to bring so much pain to you. Our faith just wanted to help you cope with the loss of your loved ones, nothing else. But our methods were misguided. I'm sorry…I'm sorry, but a simple apology is not enough to pay for our crimes".

The Major intervened, "There are no crimes. I'm ready to give a pardon and exonerate all member of the Coven".

"And we are ready to refuse it. Our hands are as dirty as yours" Violet responded.

An old lady came out of the crowd, to Jaune and Violet's surprise, it was the old lady they had helped the day before. She approached Violet slowly much to the crowd's curiosity.

"Is it true? You wanted to help my husband?".

"Yes ma'am…I'm sorry I didn't help you, but I did want to give peace to your husband's soul…At least I wanted to try". Violet responded to which the old woman just grabbed her hands with teary eyes.

"Thank you" She said with a smile. Violet broke down in tears as the woman gave her a hug.

The crowd was astonished.

After the woman let go of Violet, The Major intervened once more. "The sisters are willing to pay for their crimes?".

"Yes, sir".

"In that case, by order of city hall, the sisters of Saint Agnes will repay the citizens of Sevillana by assisting them in all their needs. You will serve this city and its people unconditionally…under the faith of your choice". He declared. The sisters were shocked, this gave them the freedom to perform their duties without hiding their faith. No longer would they be forced to choose a god, they would be able to follow their belief at its fullest as long as they remained loyal to the people, something that was their desire after all.

"Thank you, Major. We will".

"Don't call me that…Not anymore" The Major said before addressing the crowd once more. "As my final acts as Major of Sevillana, I revoke all the stablished Social Projects. The Sisters of Saint Agnes will forever remain under the protection of the government. And similar projects to restrict the expression of emotions will be banned from being stablished. An attempt to do so will be considered treason".

"Major…" A guard said, but the Major turned with a peaceful expression.

"Not anymore. I formally resign from my position and surrender myself to the authorities. I declare guilty of murder, arson, negligence, corruption, littering, any charge you want…I love this city, and I failed its people…it's time to attune for my sins".

The Major smiled as the guards pulled handcuffs to arrest him, but before they could he stopped them. "One last thing". He walked over to Jaune and asked Victoria to let go of his arm. The Major lifted it to the air, "PEOPLE OF SEVILLANA! I INTRODUCE YOU TO YOUR HERO! JAUNE ARC!".

The troops and the witches cheered and applauded and soon so did the crowd.

Don smiled proudly and soon Jaune smiled at him, thankful.

Jaune's vision was blurry and the sound of the cheering crowd became more and more distorted as he passed out. Complete silence was in his head as he lost consciousness…and a familiar voice came to him "…I'm so happy…Jaune…".

* * *

Morning came and the city was rebuilding, yet everything felt completely different. There was still tension and fear, but also hope for a better tomorrow.

The people worked tirelessly and so did the sisters. Tending the injured, helping in the repairs, supplying food, water and medicine. The sisters ran around helping as many people as they could, even those who still saw them as nothing but evil witches, they didn't care, in their eyes, the only way to heal the wound they caused was by showing these people who they really were.

The Sisters of Saint Agnes took their new found freedom of belief and decided to no longer hide their faith on the God of Darkness. They would no longer split between the sisters and the coven. Choosing to call themselves the Coven of the Twin Sisters they would follow the paths of the God of Light and the God of Darkness equally. Without a headmistress, the sisters elected a new leader and they all agreed, there were none more fit for the roll than Violet and Victoria, the new headmistresses of the Coven.

Justice came to Mother Emilia; she was sentenced to life imprisonment. She was hoping for execution, a minute more in this sinful city was disgusting to her. But the Coven convinced the judge to do otherwise, she still had many crimes on Remnant to pay for.

Former Major Cornsilk was imprisoned as well…20 years of house arrest. He wanted more as the guilt over so many deaths was excruciating. He was forced to compensate the city monetarily, basically donating almost his entire money. The sisters intervened however, claiming that he wouldn't be able to serve house arrest without a house. As a result, the Major was given a shed behind the Cathedral of Saint Agnes, nothing luxurious and rather small, but with a window to a nice garden from which he could see the sisters tend the needs of the citizens. It sounded really peaceful to him.

Don ran around helping the reconstruction efforts. He kept on telling his stories to the workers, many of which grew annoyed really quickly.

As the city worked tirelessly to rebuilt, Jaune and Cardin sat under the sun on a bench. Jaune had a bandage around his head while Cardin sported a black eye and bandages on his nose courtesy of Jaune's fists.

"Shade Academy?" Jaune asked, curious at what Cardin was telling him.

"Yeah. That's where Coco took Velvet and her team after the fall. Many went there to continued studying, it must be like a Beacon reunion over there" He drank a bit of water before continuing, "At first I thought you and Ruby had run off there too".

"Ha, no. Afterward we went to Haven and…things weren't exactly good there either" Jaune replied.

Cardin looked at him with a serious look, "You won't tell who are they, right?".

Jaune took a long breath, "No. I'm sorry, I can't".

Cardin smiled, he already knew the answer, "Meh, it's alright. At least now I know someone will kick their assess".

"Hehe".

"But Jaune, seriously. If you guys ever need help, don't let the rest of us out. There are a lot of Beacon students who would gladly fight with you. Remember that they lost too. Try to keep that in mind when you make it to Vacuo".

Jaune smiled. "I'll let Ruby know. What about you guys? Are you also going to Shade?".

Cardin looked at the distance and saw the rest of his team. They were slacking off from work and making fun of Dove. He put on a smile. "No. I'm staying here for a while. The sisters aren't the only ones with sins to attune to. The city is still divided because of me, and it will be like that for a long time. I owe them…But, The guys…I told them to leave if they wanted, I dragged them along for too long now…Hehe, but the dumbasses said no. They said that they wanted to stay…as a team".

Jaune was glad to hear that. Russel, Dove and Sky use to be quick to abandon Cardin when he needed them back at Beacon. Maybe now they saw something worth staying for.

The three slacking idiots were approached by an angry Victoria who yelled at them for fooling around and not working. She pulled Sky and Russel by the ears and dragged them back to work, Dove running with them completely compliant and afraid of her rage.

"She is amazing" Cardin said as he looked at Victoria. Much to Jaune's surprise. Cardin realized Jaune saw him staring and immediately became nervous, "I mean…for a faunus…".

The two former rivals sat in silence looking at the sky.

"The anniversary is in two days. It's crazy isn't it?" Cardin said with a bit of melancholy in his voice.

"Yeah…A full year, After the Fall…" Jaune replied with a sorrowful tone.

Jaune and Cardin stretched and stood up, ready to head out.

"Ready for work?" Cardin asked.

"No, I'm meeting Violet back at the temple. Later Don and I will get everything ready to continue our trip tomorrow". Jaune answered.

Cardin smiled at him and replied, "Ok, I'll see you at dinner then".

"Yeah, I'll see you then".

Cardin started to walk out but stopped right away and turned back, "Oh, Jaune?".

"Yeah?".

"Pyrrha would be proud of you. I'm sure of that". Cardin said before leaving the scene.

Jaune smiled at the comment, but didn't say anything. He appreciated the words, he really did…but they may have been more painful than Cardin realized.

* * *

Violet and Jaune walked across the woods south of the city. Jaune was leading her to the place he had hidden the Book of Shadows.

"Right this way, oh headmistress".

"Hehe. Stop it! Don't call me that. It's embarrassing enough". Violet replied as she punched Jaune's arm playfully.

The two walked across the forest calmly, there was a peace Violet had never felt in these woods before.

As they walked deeper into woods, Violet decided to say something she had in her mind for a while now. "Jaune…".

"Yeah?".

"Thank you…for everything. You kept your promise and I… will always be in debt with you".

Jaune chuckled a little. "You don't owe me anything. I'm just glad things will get better for you and the city. Besides…I haven't kept all my promises yet…".

"What do you mean?" Violet asked, a bit confused by the comment.

"Oh…nothing, forget about it. It's right this way".

As Jaune and Violet walked, the woods started to clear a little. They crossed some bushes to get to a clearing.

"It's over h…" Jaune tried to say, but Violet pulled him behind a tree and shut his mouth with her hand quickly.

Silently, the two of them picked their heads out of the tree and were astonished by the sight. A beowolf was smelling a lone tree. Curious, it walked around it as if searching for something. Eventually, the beowolf climbed the tree and smelled a hole in it, using its claws to break the hole open, exposing what was inside. As the hole on the tree got wide enough, the Beowolf jumped down and stared at the Book of Shadows. Jaune and Violet were shocked when the Grimm, the vicious creature of death and destruction, kneeled before the Book the Of Shadows, praising its presence. Jaune tried to get a closer look, his hand in his sword in case of a fight, he stepped on a branch and cracked it. The beowolf turned around and the two saw each other eye to eye…but the beowolf didn't attack. The creature ignored Jaune and left without even attempting to attack. As Violet came out of the bushes, the two looked back at the Book of Shadows, in shock at what just had happened. Something Violet could only describe as a miracle…from the God of Darkness.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And with that, we end the Witches' Market arc. Thank you so much for reading. As always, any feedback both positive and negative are appreciated.
> 
> A bit of lore:
> 
> Victoria's Semblance is called "Angelic Witchcraft", it allows her to nullify the effect of gravity in both herself and other people, a max of 4 people at the time. She must touch the target to apply the effect and then remain focus to keep the effect up. The larger and heavier the object the harder it is to use on it. It comes from the side of her personality that wants to oversee her sisters and keep them safe, this is why it lets her reach hights to see her loves ones all around as well as takes the heavy weight off of their shoulders.
> 
> The Scolopendra was created before I even knew about the canon "Centinels". To keep consistency, the Scolopendra is a unique species to the Stained Coast Line but is closely related to the Centinels. The Scolopendra is based of the Scolopendra Gigantae or the Amazonian Gigant Centipede (google it and then imagine you are 8 years old and woke up with one of those crawling up your leg...Now you know why this thing terrifies me). The Scolopendra is extremely larger than its Atlasian cousins and sports a bulletproof plated hide. The black goo inside the Scolopendra is a fluid with properties similar to the Grimm spawning pools, but is not the same substance. The Black goo regenerates the Scolopendra's body parts essencially by spawning a new body in the same manner a new Grimm would be born from a Grimm spawning pool. It's not exacly a healing substance, it creates a completly new section of the body. Unlike the Grimm spawning goo, the Black goo is extremely immflamable.
> 
> Jaune's spear, like Don's, it's technically a Swordstaff, not exacly a spear. However, it would be refered as such for the sake of simplicity and out of personal preference.
> 
> Thank you all for reading. Hope you have a great day.


	10. Today you get to be happy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When memories from the past haunt you, heal your sorrows with a laughter.

**Chapter X**

**Today You Get to Be Happy**

The blue sky and the soft fall breeze brought with it a nostalgic warm. The feeling of grass on his hands made Jaune calm as he laid on the floor contemplating the clouds. Fresh air, peace and quiet, it was enough for anyone to just forget their troubles, many would give anything for a moment like this, a moment of serenity in which there was nothing else in the world that mattered, only your thoughts and dreams….And yet…he couldn't feel like that. Something just didn't let him rest. It was a feeling of anxiety that kept telling him to stand up and run. But why? What about this place was bugging him so much? He was tired, tired of fighting, tire of running, tire of losing. He just wanted a bit of peace, a moment to let all the burdens weighting him down off his shoulders. He just wanted to let it all pass…and yet.

Jaune stood up, looking around a bit disoriented. As maple leaves flew with the wind, he was graced with the view of Beacon Academy. The place he called home. The place where so many friends entered his life. In the distance there were his friends of team RWBY. Ruby as usual was cheery and energetic, together with Yang they were trying to make their teammates laugh, something that Blake tried to hide with a shy smile while Weiss refused to admit how funny her friend's shenanigans were. On the bench next to them, Ren and Nora stood dancing, it was always a bit awkward for them to show their love for each other, Ren just wasn't the type of guy to show much emotion, but Nora was a tank full of energy and cute feelings. Even with the awkwardness, Ren still gave it his all to make Nora happy, he was a great dancer and even though he found it embarrassing, it didn't matter, everything he could do to make her smile was worth it. Next to them clapping and cheering them was the newest of the group, little Oscar, the two had a rough start but with time he had become like the little brother Jaune never had.

Jaune saw his beloved friends with nostalgia, missing all their jokes, their cheery smiles, their kind hearts.

He didn't notice the change, but he was now sitting on a bench. He paid no mind to it, he just contemplated the joy on his friends' faces, that joy that he deeply wanted to share with them…and still. There was still that feeling, that burden, that weight in his heart that kept bothering him. He saw his friends laughing and he only wanted to cry. He wanted to feel joy like them, and yet all he felt was sorrow. He couldn't explain why…but at the same time, he knew.

"There is no time". A voice next to him told him…a far too familiar voice. Jaune turned to see with dismay the milky white skin, the golden armor and the red hair…covering those emerald eyes he desperately desired to see once more.

A booming sound surprised him as the sky, once blue and bright, turned black and engulfed in darkness. Ashes rained all around. Beacon Academy, the school they called home, laid in nothing but scorched ruins. The roars of Grimm surrounding them. The sounds of explosions and gun fire. The flames coming from the basement. They all sent a sour message. Professor Ozpin, had perished. Beacon, had fallen. So many lives, lost in a single night.

His heart raised; his breath became harder. In a panic, he stood up and turned back at where his friends use to be…and only saw suffering. There on the distance, Yang laid with an arm missing, Blake had a sword through her stomach, Ren was kneeling holding Nora with despaired screams and tears, Weiss laid with a glass spear piercing her side, Oscar had his back against a tree and his head down…and Ruby…all the life on her silver eyes…was gone.

"Go. Get to Vale and call for help".

"What? What are you gonna do?!".

She stood there…her hair covering her eyes and not a single word coming from her mouth…he already knew the answer.

"No….Pyrrha you can't! You saw how powerful she is!" His voice started to crack, the mere thought of what could happen was breaking him in despair. "Pyrrha, I won't let you do…".

She stopped him…with a kiss. A sweet sign of her love. A kiss she wanted to give him for so long, and never had the courage to do so. Soft, sweet, warm…painful. To love someone and not take the time to tell them, it's a regret that they both carried. That soft kiss, they wished they could have just stopped time all together, just for that kiss to last forever. But that's not how the world works. Even the sweetest kiss can turn sour and bitter…when the reality of things comes crashing.

She pushed him inside a nearby locker, shutting him in. The sorrow in her voice, the tears pouring down her cheeks, he could do nothing but stare at her as every bit of hope shattered with her last words.

"I'm sorry".

"Wait! Stop! STOP! Pyrrha, Please! DON'T DO THIS!".

She didn't answer…there was nothing else to say. Just activate the rocket…and send her love to safety…knowing perfectly well she wouldn't return from her fight…but someone had to try.

As the locker took flight, Jaune was overwhelmed with desperation, he started hitting the walls in his prison, yelling, shaking, crying.

"NO! NO! LET ME OUT! NO! DON'T DO THIS! NOT AGAIN! PYRRHA! PYRRHA!". Flames started to engulf the locker, and soon the walls melted down. Darkness surrounded him and voices started whispering in his ears.

"You couldn't even try"; "Always so weak"; "You can't save her now".

He started to panic, moving his head left and right. Without warning, the dark void he was floating in pulled him down a bottomless hole. Flames and smoke started to fill the void and the silence all around was replaced with the taunting voice…of the one who took her life.

"A failure…It should have been you…the one who died that day….It should have been youuuuuuu".

"AAAAAH!".

…He woke up. His breath was heavy and he was covered in cold sweat. He was disoriented, turning everywhere in panic, trying to make sense of the world once more. He still felt the heat of the flames, he still smelled the smoke and ashes….but looking around, all he saw was the extinguished campfire and the trees surrounding him…and his master sleeping peacefully. It was the middle of the night…and Jaune had been dreaming about it again. It had been so long since he last had a nightmare of that day…he thought those sleepless nights were behind him, but as soon as he realized they came back to haunt him once more…he couldn't do anything but break down in tears.

* * *

At the crack of dawn, it was time for Master and Squire to start their daily training session. Generally, there wasn't an excuse to not do it. Unless they were lost in an island, fighting an army, a witch coven or a Grimm swarm….or just being drunk and passed out, it wasn't a regular morning if Jaune and Don weren't sparing.

The spear's blade crashed on Don's shield vigorously. "Good strike, my boy. Now follow through!".

Jaune did as told and continued his strikes, all blocked swiftly. He continued his assault, spinning the spear a few times before going for a thrust. Don just stepped to the side and slammed the spear away with a shield strike. His apprentice got caught off guard by this, something Don took advantage of really quickly. He now had the upper hand, slashing and forcing Jaune back as he blocked his strikes.

"Widen the gap!" He said before kicking his apprentice and pushing him back, almost making him fall. "No wonder you got so bitten up last time. You got range now, kid. If they are getting too close you are doing something wrong. Keep your distance!".

Jaune was starting to get a bit frustrated. He recovered his offensive stance and immediately charged at his master. He went for another thrust…that Don just deflected again with his shield. Jaune was once more surprised by this, but this time, Don didn't give him a chance to block, he straight up bashed him with his shield, upper cutting him and sending him crashing down to the ground.

" _Sign_ " The old knight just shook his head, stowing his sword and walking towards his defeated apprentice.

Jaune was laying on his side, his chin hurt but maybe his pride hurt even more. He soon saw the hand of his master reaching to his aid.

"Come one, stand up".

He took the hand of his mentor, ashamed of his weak display.

"You are distracted. What's wrong, lad?".

"Eh…Nothing. I just didn't…sleep well, that's all". He answered while picking up his spear again.

"Too much in your mind? Wanna talk about it?".

"What? No, no. I'm fine, come on let's keep going".

Don wasn't really convinced at all. There was something troubling his apprentice, he could read him like a book. It had been over 2 months since they started their journey and Don already knew Jaune as if he had raised the kid himself. He had seen those sad eyes before. He thought he was feeling better, he even had seen him smile more. But something was bringing him down again.

Jaune stood ready for another round. Don admired his enthusiasm…until he began to notice how fake it was.

Time and time again the pattern kept happening, Jaune would attack, Don would block or evade and deliver what should have been an easy strike to avoid. Every strike was followed by another mistake, every punch was followed but an upset growl.

"You are getting too close" resulted in a shield to the stomach.

"No, no, don't give your back to the opponent!" Don said as he slashed his apprentice on the back.

"Move around, what are you doing?!", another strike and another trip to the ground.

"You call that a stance?! Come on, lad!" slamming the ground again.

"DON'T STEP ON LOSE ROCKS!" Fell again.

"WHAT" down again, "ARE" and again, "YOU" and again, "DOING?!" and again.

Crash after crash Jaune grew more and more frustrated and his master even more concerned.

" _Sigh_. Kid, you are better than this, what's going…".

"I'M FINE! JUST SHUT UP! I DON'T WANNA HEAR IT!". He yelled at his master…something that he immediately regretted. His eyes got wide at the realization of what he just did. "I….Don, I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to…".

"I think we had enough for the day". Don said stowing his sword as he looked at his apprentice with a strong glare, something that hurt Jaune more than the bruises of their training.

"I'm so sorry. Please, let's keep going. I'm fine, I promise".

"Yeah, yeah. But I'm…getting hungry. Why won't you start making breakfast? I'll…check the map and see where we are heading".

"Don…".

"That's an order, squire".

Jaune reluctantly stowed his weapon, looking at the ground with shame and frustration. "Fine".

As the boy walked to the camp stomping his feet and mumbling frustrated, Don just shook his head at the kid's tantrum. Had he learned nothing? Getting mad and frustrated? What was worse, mumbling to himself in self petty? That's not the spirit of a knight errant at all. A tantrum and a cynical attitude? Not in his watch! Don hated seeing his apprentice like that, so full of negativity, he had to do something.

He quickly ran to his bag and pulled the map that he absolutely didn't forget to pack when they first began their adventure, who says otherwise? Nop, that never happened…Ever!

Pencil in hand and using a stump as a table, the old man began to do what he did best, let his imagination fly and make it a reality. "Ok, let's see….Aha! this looks promising" he kept saying as he circled areas in the map, he kept writing notes on it, drawing lines, making notes, all while dancing on his sit and humming a happy tune.

An emotional outburst like that was something Jaune hadn't done for months now. He felt so ashamed. Last time he did something like that he ended up alone, driving away his master just because of how miserable he felt with himself. Even before that he had been doing stuff like this, hurting Oscar who didn't even deserve it and was just a child, yelling at Qrow who was just trying to help him and his friends. He hated feeling like this…that heavy weight in his heart…why?...why did it come back? He was feeling fine, his smile had returned…he was getting peace…why again?

The boy finished a couple of sandwiches when he noticed something a bit surprising. While he was there feeling sorry for himself…his master actually looked joyful. Even after he yelled at him so rudely, he didn't look upset, he was humming like a happy child. It would have been strange to anyone…but after thinking about it for a bit…nah, this was just how Don was, an old child always with a smile on his face.

Jaune approached his master, still a bit ashamed of his attitude but he soon got curious when he caught a small glimpse of the mess his master was drawing on the map.

"What are you…" Jaune tried to say but Don quickly took the map away and hid it from his sight.

"Hey! No peeping! Is not ready yet!" The old man said before snatching the sandwich from his apprentice's hand. "Go on! Pick everything up, we are leaving in a bit, go, go!". He kept saying while stuffing his mouth with the warm bread.

Jaune did as told, he was still curious though, his master was acting weird…which is how Don acted when he…Oh no…this couldn't be good. No, no, Don, he had to be upset, right? He couldn't be that joyful after a fight, so he couldn't be thinking of doing something crazy?...right?

The camp was ready, everything was packed and Jaune was as calm and relaxed as a chihuahua who drank too much coffee. He approached Don shivering. "Do….Don? Everything is ready….".

His master stood up and turned at him, his hat covering his eyes but a malicious grind sent shivers into Jaune's bones. "Hehe…hehehe…Jaune…".

"Ye….Yes?!".

"Guess what?".

"Please don't…."

"I HAVE AN IDEA!"

"WHY GODS?! IM SO SORRY, I'LL NEVER YELL AGAIN!".

"Quit your whining, kid!" Don said hitting his apprentice in the back of the head, "Now take a look at this!", he said proudly showing his poorly drawn map. The map was covered in nonsense scrawls with paths that went all over the place and doodles that looked as if a 5 year old had drawn it, if you had told Jaune that his 1 year old nephew Adrian had taken a box of crayons and drawn that map, he would have believed you.

"What…Am I…looking at?" Jaune said before receiving a hit on the head with the map.

"Well, today I decided to give you a special type of training".

"In what?".

"Do not question your master! All I'll say is that everything you need to learn you'll find it in the places I marked".

"Will I survive?".

"Absolutely maybe!".

" _Sigh_. I guess I deserve this…".

"Oh, yeah. You do".

* * *

The sun shined on yet another beautiful day in the Stained Coast Line. The road was getting a bit chilly, not surprising though, summer had officially ended and the fall in north Anima wasn't a joke, with cold winds coming from the north, the green hills began to be graces by a fresh breeze while the trees across the deep forests began to lose their green coats.

Master and apprentice continued their journey with enthusiasm…at least coming from the old child that was Don who kept on hopping in excitement for his plan for the day. Jaune on the other hand was way more worried, when his master got an idea…it usually didn't end well for him.

"Look, why don't we take this easy? I saw a town nearby on the map, maybe we could…". Jaune tried to say but his mentor cut him off.

"Oh, don't worry, we are going there, but first we'll do a few stops".

"Where?".

"I told you, I have a plan. You know where we are?".

"Lost?".

"What? N…Oh wait, I had the map upside down, just a second…Aha! There you go, we are getting close".

"Don!".

"Fine, fine, I'll give you some spoilers" The old man quickly jumped on a big bolder on the side of the road, standing with a hand on his side and the other with his sword drawn. "Look around, child! For you are in the Celestine Road! one of the most beautiful natural areas in the entire Stained Coast Line!".

The Celestine Road was a famous location in the region, it was a small area with a high concentration of rivers and small lakes coming from the mountains. The rivers were famous for their crystal-clear waters that would flow all the way to Lake Matsu. The Celestine Road possessed some of the most beautiful panoramic scenes in Anima. The rivers, the mountains and hills were extremely popular for hikers looking to marvel their eyes with the precious scenic view. Many tourists loved to explore the area and bathe in the rivers of pure water or enjoy the natural hot springs found across the road, but naturally, the fact that this area was so far away from the main kingdom made it a bit risky to reach for most people's comfort, this however was seen as a blessing for many specially the locals of the few small settlements around since there was very little risk of tourists damaging the natural beauty of the area.

"….Ok…" Jaune answered, not that amused. Sure, it was pretty, but what was his master's point?

"These ungrateful kids, I blame the internet! Look, lad. Grandpa Cervantes use to bring me and my brother here all the time. Now, there a few places I remember were the best this region has to offer and today, you and I will go over them, got it?".

"But you said we were going to train".

"And I also said to not question your master! Now come on, kid, I promise you, by the end of the day you'll be stronger than ever!".

With those enthusiastic words, Don continued his exciting walk across the Celestine Road, while Jaune just kept going with the motions, is not like he had a choice the matter after all.

* * *

The pair ventured deep into the woods and soon began to walk on some ledges, the road was a bit muddy and slippery which was making Jaune nervous as they kept getting more and more altitude. A quick pick down the cliff gave him a good look at a beautiful river, a strong stream of pure water that was as gorgeous as it was powerful, the rapids' roar was everlasting.

"Don, I don't like this".

"I know, I love it too! The fresh air of nature, the beautiful view, the swarms of mosquitoes. Ah, this brings back memories" Don replied with a big smile on his face at the nostalgic memories of his dear old grandpa. "And here it is, lad! Our first stop. Grace your eyes with its beauty!".

Jaune kept having a cynical look on his face, a bit annoyed at his master's cheerfulness, however for a moment everything that was worrying him banished at the sight of a marvelous waterfall. It was unlike anything he had seen, a true natural wonder untouched by human kind. The boy stood there in awe at the imponent presence of the waterfall. "Thi…This is amazing. Wow, Don are you seein….Don?".

Jaune turned around quickly and caught his old master taking off his clothes and just staying with nothing but some shorts he had been wearing gods know for how long under his pants. "Come on, lad, get ready for a swim. This is a very special place. Grandpa Cervantes called this 'the Falls of Valor', a quick swim in its water will give you the bravery of a thousand soldiers!".

Jaune was hesitant of course, but after walking the road all morning, a refreshing swim sounded extremely good. He took off his hoodie and boots and just stayed with his pants. As soon as he got ready, he noticed something, sure the waterfalls were pretty close to them…but where was the pond they would swim in? Maybe they needed to go up stream or maybe there was a road to the bottom of the waterfall…but why undress here then?

"Eh…Don, where will we swim?" He saw as his old master started to climb a tree that extended beyond the cliff horizontally and in an effort to bring him to his senses…he followed him. Oh, foolish Jaune, he really should have known better.

"Don! Where are you going?!".

"Didn't I tell you? These are the Falls of Valor. There is only one way to swim in its waters".

"Don, this isn't funny, let's get back to the ground".

Don just rolled his eyes, "Bah. Its fine. Come on, look down at the beautiful view".

Jaune's legs were shaking as the tree kept moving, he made the mistake of hearing his master's instructions and saw the view…the terrifying view of a long long fall that ended in a small pond surrounded by sharp rocks. "WHY DID I LOOK DOWN?!".

"Don't give me that attitude! This is a test of valor, lad! Where is that bravery you showed when we fought the Scolopendra?".

"I left it over there where it's safe!".

"Oh, what's wrong? Afraid of heights?" Don began to mock his apprentice.

"N…No! I just…" He tried to defend himself but Don began to stomp on the tree trunk. "Ah! Stop it!".

"Aw, fancy lad is scared. Grow up, kid! Didn't they teach you about landing strategies at school?!". Another stomp and the tree began to bounce up and down.

"AH! I SAID STOP THAT!".

"Uh, what should I stop? THIS!?" Don jumped on the tree shaking it violently.

"YEAH! THAT!"

"THIS?!".

Jaune began to stumble, in an effort to keep balance he ran uncontrollably until he managed to grab his mentor's arm, "PLEASE! DON'T!".

"Hahahah! Come on, kid. Relax. I'm just messing with you….But we are jumping though".

"Why?!".

"Because I know you are braver than this and because of the adrenaline!".

"Adrenaline my ass! Look! There is a path over there, we can just walk down the pond and have a good time, ok?". Jaune pleaded at his master who rolled his eyes a bit disappointed.

"Ah, fine! If you are going to be a baby about it" Don finally gave in, the two slowly moving back to solid ground, but as it often happens…fate likes to play cruel pranks.

" _Crack_ ".

Their eyes got wide at the sound.

"J…Jaune….".

"Ye…yeah?".

"….Maybe we should have taken the PAAAAAAAAAAAATHHHHH!".

It was hard to tell which was loader, the crash of the waterfall or the screams of the two fools falling into the water.

Despaired for air, Jaune came out to the surface and quickly grab unto the broken tree trunk. "I'm alive! I'm al…Don? DON?!".

Don came out a little bit later with a big smile "WOOOOOHOOO! That was awesome! Hahahahah! What did I tell you? You feel the adrenaline?!", he said as he grabbed the trunk as well.

"…I guess, so".

"Come on, lad! Smile!".

"I'm just glad we are alive ok? Come on, let's get out of here before….".

" _Crack_ ". That sound…it came back for revenge.

"Don…what's behind the tree?".

"The…rapids….".

"….So this was stop number 1?".

"Yeah…".

"…I hate yoUUUUUUUAAAHHHHHH!".

* * *

The day just kept going and going and going. Surviving the rapids was just the first step. Don was adamant to visit his favorite places from childhood. The mysterious cave of infinite wonders, an ancient cave full of bright ice dust…that Don sneezed at, in his defense that place was very dirty… "was" being the key word here. An ice explosion sounds like a bizarre contradictory but Jaune and Don were masters of bizarre contradictions, on a positive note, the new glacial of infinite wonders is really pretty to look at, or if you are Don, really pretty to lick and get your tongue stock at.

Next stop was Althea's geyser. As a child, Don recalled how his older brother and him use to throw rocks at it to see it react, of course they only got vapor but hey, childhood is throwing rocks at thing you shouldn't. So, did he just let it be an admired the natural beauty of the geyser?...Yeah right. He started throwing rocks and encouraging Jaune to do the same. He refused at first but the small clouds of steam coming out after each rock hit the bottom…well, it was kind of fun to look at…You'll think by now Jaune would have learned to not let Don influence his decision making. The two kept throwing rocks until Don got a malicious smile, Jaune didn't understand at first but something made him curious, Don had his shield out and told him to have his ready as well. With shields up, Jaune kept throwing rocks…not noticing what his master had done, Jaune threw a bit of ice dust that Don had put in his pile of rocks without him noticing…that couldn't be good. He realized too late of what he did, but his master didn't let him run away. Don pushed his apprentice in the geyser and jumped behind him, shields first, the ice dust clashed with the hot water from the geyser, reacting into a powerful steam stream that launched the pair in the air.

"AHHHHH!"

"HAHAHAHA! THIS IS AWESOME! I CAN FLY! I CAN…." They landed on their faces of course. Solid rock? Not soft at all…

That's how the day kept going. Master and apprentice traveled across the Celestine road, finding new and exciting ways of smashing their faces on the ground. Excitement was at every corner. Climbing a tall cliff to steal Nevermore eggs before remembering Nevermores don't lay eggs and getting promptly attacked. Zip lining over the canopies of the deep forest, just to fall as soon as they got on, in hindsight maybe an abandoned zip line wasn't the safest thing in the world. Finally relaxing in a hot spring…and getting attacked by the King Taijitu living in it. This is what life was all about.

* * *

So many adventures and the day wasn't over yet. Don was still full of energy and eager for more excitement, but more importantly, he was eager to see that big smile on his student's…face….oh. Sadly, it was the opposite.

It didn't matter how much excitement they were getting…Jaune kept just walking with the motions. It didn't matter if they were on an adventure, it didn't matter how many places Don kept taking him to, he still couldn't shake this feeling of sorrow from his head and heart. The two kept walking on the forest as a few leaves began to fall, it was the season of change as they called it. Don was a bit disappointed; he still saw those empty eyes in his apprentice, but he was not discouraged, he refused to sit down and let him be consumed by them, he had to do something, he had to try.

Jaune just walked in silence. He didn't understand. The nightmares, the painful memories, the anxiety, he thought he had left it all behind …or did he? Maybe he wasn't as well as he thought he was. Sure, he was smiling more, but those painful memories, those dark thoughts…they were still there, maybe he was still grabbing on to them unknowingly, maybe they still lurked in his heart waiting for the right moment to take him once more…but why now? Why?...Jaune's thoughts were confusing, but he soon remembered some words that resonated in his heart, a promise he was yet to fulfil, 'promise me you won't bottle up anymore'. Those words gave him a bit of clarity, he began to remember the last time he felt this way, was it at Magdalene's Inn? No…it was…that night…when he realized Cardin was suffering as much as he was, "…Cardin?" he thought and soon was hit with realization, he pulled out his scroll and a quick look at the date gave him the answer he was looking for, " _Sigh_ ….Of course".

Jaune stopped on his tracks, scratching the back of his head, he now knew why he was feeling so miserable all of the sudden, he now understood what had him so down. Violet's words kept resonating in his head, he lifted his gaze at Don who was walking a bit far by now…he wanted to keep his promise…he just didn't feel ready.

"Hey! Kid! Look what I found!". Don called, waving at him to come quickly.

As Jaune approached, he saw what seemed to be an abandoned carriage. It was in fairly good shape, some hits here and there but still standing.

"Don?".

"Over here, lad!". Don signaled; he wasted no time in getting inside the carriage looking for some treasure.

"Hey, get out of there! Someone might come for it".

"I doubt it. This is full of spider webs. No one has been here in a while now. Get on, take a look at this". Don gave a hand to his student. As soon as Jaune got in the carriage, he saw 5 wood barrels, all covered in dust and webs, there were also a few small boxes, this was clearly a merchant's carriage. He explored it a bit while Don kept checking the barrels, no signs of the previous owner but the ceiling had a few holes… and the driver's seat had a bit of blood, checking the front it seemed the straps that were supposed to tie the horse up were broken. It was clear something bad had happened to this merchant, but hopefully he managed to escape with his life.

"What you got?". Jaune asked as the sound of a cork caught his attention.

"Ohhhh, haha! You smell that? Red wine. We hit jackpot, kid! There is also sugar and cinnamon in those boxes".

"These two barrels are empty, but three barrels is a lot. What do you think we should do with it?".

"Let's see…." Don pulled out his trusty poorly drawn map, "Ok, This road heads to a village and it's not far away".

"What do you have in mind?".

Don jumped out of the carriage and looked around, spinning in place with his map in hand. "Aha! I'm brilliant!", he said with excitement, he looked like a kid that was just told they could get ice cream.

"Oh, gods, now what?".

"You learned to make cocktails at Maggie's place, didn't you? You know how to make Sangria?".

"Eh…Yeah, sure. It's just red wine and fruit".

"Ah, but which fruits? That's the real trick! I remember a place with the most amazing fruits in this region and is not far away, I actually wanted to make a stop there. So, here is the plan, we go to this place, pick up the fruits we need, I teach you how to make the famous Cervantes style sangria (trademarked!) and we have a little fun, maybe even get rich at the village!".

Jaune wasn't that on board, not surprising, at this point he didn't trust any idea that came from his master…but they were this far already and a bit of extra cash wasn't going to hurt…what's the worst that could happen?

* * *

A few hours of pushing the carriage up a hill left the two heroes exhausted, that thing was way heavier than it looked, but getting up there was step one. To get the fruits they wanted, the two had to make it all the way down the hill to a small patch of trees they saw in the distance. Jaune was marveled at the sight, the horizon was green until the eye could see and the grass graced by the wind made emerald waves on that sea of leaves.

Jaune stood there admiring the sight until the sound of barrels hitting the floor caught his attention.

"So…uh… What now?". He foolishly asked.

"What do you mean 'what now'? Down there is Appleseed Garden, home of the best fruits in Anima. We get there, fill these empty barrels and get on our way".

"Ok then, let's get going, getting the carriage down the hill will be a pain but….Wow, wow! What are you doing?!". Like a little child, Don had picked up Jaune and threw him inside one of the empty barrels before kicking it down on its side.

"Don! What the?!".

"Hahah! Who said anything about the carriage? What you are looking at here is the longest hill in the Celestine Road, and my boy, there is only one way to go down it".

"Don! I'm begging youUUUUUUU!". He couldn't even finish his plead for mercy when Don had already kicking the barrel and made it roll down the hill.

With a cheerful cry, the old man jumped in his own barrel and rolled down eager to have the trip of his life.

Between screams of terror and a laughter of joy, the barrels kept rolling and rolling and rolling down the hill. Don had fun memories of doing this over and over again with his dear brother, as kids they were a pair of trouble makers and this hill was their favorite. Jaune was getting nostalgic memories of his own, he was scared sure…but he was also kind of enjoying it, he couldn't deny it was a bit fun, it reminded him how him and his sisters use to play when their parents took them on vacations. He kept screaming of course, but maybe this wasn't as horrible as he thought…that was until other memories came to him, the memories of the event that got him the nickname 'vomit boy'.

As the barrels hit the trees and stopped on their tracks, Jaune rushed out and immediately let it all out. Don arrived a bit later, laughing and dizzy.

"Hahahahah! This is what life is all about! Right, kid?...kid?".

"Brrrggggg!".

Don laughed at his apprentice at first, but soon that laugh was drowned with a bit of guilt. He had been working very hard to bring a smile to Jaune…and there the boy was with a sad expression still…Maybe he was failing…but he refused to give up, not yet.

"Come on lad, let me help you".

"Tha…Thanks…", As the two stood up, they found themselves in a tiny forest full of trees of different fruits. Apples, oranges, limes, peaches and Don's secret ingredient, plums. It was quite the sight, all this fruits all ripen and ready for the taken even though some were out of season. Fruits that were rare to see in this region…in fact…some weren't supposed to grow in this region at all...and how were there so many different fruits gathered in this one spot? they shouldn't even be able to grow together like that.

As Don and Jaune collected all the fruits, the boy began to notice something interesting, green crystals could be seen bellow the roots of the trees, he remembered learning in class about plant dust and how its aided agriculture specially in cold areas. It was the prime source of food in Sanus even with their cold tundra. It still seemed a bit odd how well taken care of these wild trees were…were they even wild?

An hours later, the barrels were full and they did the long walk up the hill again. This wasn't the sort of training Jaune was expecting but he was sure Nora would disagree with him. Finally, they loaded their harvest on the carriage and were getting ready to leave when Don smiled at his student, never a good sign. "Give me a minute, kid. I saw something down there that we can use. I won't take long.

Twenty minutes later and Jaune kept staring at the horizon, he began to feel worry for his master…and then that worry was replaced with sheer shock and confusion.

"JAUNEEE! LOOK WHAT I GOT!" Don yelled at the distance with a big pink pig squealing on his arms.

A pig? What was a pig doing….oh no. Reality once more hit Jaune like a truck. Appleseed Garden wasn't a natural forest, it was a farm…and they just stole their fruits and their pig.

"YOU STOLE A PIG?!".

"I didn't steal it! I rescued it!".

"What do you mean 'rescue it!'?!".

"Yes! Recuse it!...For the barbeque…".

At the mention of his delicious fate, the pig let out an angry squeal and immediately bit Don's hand to free itself.

" _SQUEEEEEEALLL!_ ".

"AHHHHHH!".

Once on the floor, the mad swine tackled Jaune in the stomach, throwing him to the ground before turning around and slamming Don as well. Jaune tried to get up but the brave piggy jumped on him again, slamming his face on the floor multiple times letting out its furious battle cry.

"AHHH! PLEASE STOP!". Jaune pleaded but the piggy was out of mercy. It jumped on his crutch before menacingly walking towards Don.

"TAKE MY WALLET! DON'T HURT ME!". Again, no mercy on those pork chops.

A tackle to the face and a few jumps on his stomach and the pig was done with his assault, running away back home and leaving our brave heroes, defeated.

As the knights stood up in pain, their eyes met as they both saw each other's dirt covered faces. Don was worry, he was ashamed, he just wanted to bring as a smile to his student, to the kid he had come to love as a grandchild, but once again, his foolishness brough nothing but pain….

"Hehe…hehe…HAHAHAHA!" That sound, it shocked the old man…and it brought warm to his heart. Jaune couldn't stop laughing. Depside his sorrow, despite his pain…this was just too funny to him.

Soon enough, Don joined Jaune and the two shared a laugh at the absurdity of what just happened to them. They were defeated…and yet, they couldn't stop feeling joy.

The two stood up, big smiles on their faces.

"Are you ok, kid?".

"You know what?...I think so".

"Hehe. That's my boy. Come on, let's get going before…".

"YOU BASTARDS! THAT'S MY FRUIT!". The farmer found them and he wasn't happy…and what's worst…the pig found a knife…

" _SQUEEEEEAAAALLLL!_ ".

"RUN, KID! GET TO THE CARRIEGE!".

"I'M SORRY!" Jaune yelled as he threw a bag of Lien, hoping it would make for a bit of payment for the fruits they…'rescued'. They ran and pushed the carriage downhill, making their brave escape.

* * *

Sunset was getting closer and the heroes arrived at the village with their specially brewed Sangria. They couldn't have arrived at a better time. The town was being visited by a group of nomads; a tribe called The Ursitory. Nomadic tribes weren't common, however these groups of people at times found more success than the settlements scattered around the region. A community that doesn't stay in the same place all the time is less likely to attract Grimm swarms, but of course this lifestyle had its drawbacks, they were exposed at all times and their resources were low, but the small communities had unity, they protected each other and shared their goods, it was a simple life but a surprisingly peaceful one. The Ursitory in particular were notorious across the Stained Coast Line for their trade of goods and their artistic expression, everywhere they went it was always a happy party, plays, music and even puppet shows. Some settlements distrusted them, saw them as mere bandits and low life criminals, but the Ursitory were generally friendly, they just had a peculiar lifestyle and their happy antics helped their people travel the land without many negative emotions putting them in danger.

Jaune and Don had found their ideal place, an empty spot amongst the flea market of the Ursitory. The nomads had set up their carriages in an empty field right outside the town in a big circle, their flea market was also their camp for the time being. The other merchants actually welcomed them and in a matter of minutes, the two were ready to open business.

"Ladies and Gentlemen! Are you looking for a refreshing feeling of fulfillment? You wish to delight yourself with the most exquisite fruits across the four kingdoms? Look no further! Today, I have the pleasure, NO! the honor! To grace your lives with the marvelous flavor of our precious elixir! The Cervantes & Arc Special Sangria!...Trademarked!".

The people gathered quickly to try the fruity delight, red wine, fruits, the sugary flavor and the bits of cinnamon were truly breath taking; Don was quite the charismatic seller. Serving duty fell on Jaune and soon business flourished. First glass was on the house, refills 2 lien each, they had to be crazy with those deals…and they were.

"Wow! This is amazing!" Another happy costumer. The villagers were enjoying the drink but not as much as the festive Ursitory. The nomads were marveled at the sweet taste and soon began to chat with the brew masters. Don and Jaune quickly befriended the Ursitory and as alcohol began to hit the costumers so did the music began play. An impromptu party began and the flea market soon turned into a small festival.

Don began to dance and laugh and cheer with his new friends. The barrels of Sangria got empty quickly, it was that big of a success. With everything sold out, Jaune finally got to enjoy his own mug of Sangria while watching the smiles of this people, he couldn't help but think just how much they had seen living so far from the main kingdom, how hard it must have been for them…and yet here they were, enjoying their lives, dancing with those they loved and with those they just met. There isn't a single person in this world that had never experienced tragedy…but is not in human nature to live a cynical life. We attach ourselves to hope, to joy. The value of a single smile, is priceless.

As the band close by ended their song, the slightly drunk Don kept laughing and cheering.

"Haha! Who said you can be too old to party? Hahaha. I like your spirit, grandpa. You play?" A guitarist said, inviting this old smiling man to the stage and offering him his guitar.

"Hahaha. I do, but not the guitar. It's the trusty flute for me….Actually…." Don got a new idea. "My boy is a pro guitarist. Learned like many of us…for a girl! Hahahaha!". The crowd laughed and Jaune just felt embarrassed. "Come on, lad! Play something for us!".

"YEAAHHHH!" The crowd cheered and clapped and Jaune just could feel how his face became as red as Ruby's hood, but he was put on the spot, he couldn't back down now. He walked to the stage and nervously grabbed the guitar.

"O…Ok…Eh….I don't know…" He was starting to panic; his legs were shaking a bit…that was until he heard something. As the crowd was silent awaiting his song, Jaune could clearly hear the cry of a little boy. The kid's mother was trying to calm him down but tears kept coming out of the boy's eyes. Jaune saw the little kid…and couldn't help but feel compelled to do something…When tears came of his own eyes…he always treasured those that were there for him.

Jaune began to play the guitar and sing with a soft and slow voice.

_You always dreamed with running away free_

_From your prison of glass_

_And all those walls keeping you alone_

_Are laughing at all of your hopes_

He walked off the stage, approaching the little boy. The song had a certain sadness to it, and Don began to grow weary of it.

_Today all the bars that make up your cage_

_Are your fears to fail_

_They lay hidden, they are in disguise_

_They cover your home and your eyes_

_Boy, don't you cry_

_For all of the things that were taken_

_Get a bright smile_

_With the memory of those_

_That once gave you and you gave them your love_

The guitar stopped, the cry stopped, silence covered the flea market….and with energy and a big smile, Jaune began to sing with cheer and dance with happiness.

_Boy, don't cry!_

_Your tears take them off your eyes_

_Take my hand!_

_Our smiles will reach they sky_

_You will rise!_

_When life is a disaster_

_You must face it with a laughter_

_Stand up with a bright smile!_

The crowd began to applaud, the band joined in and Don jumped to his student's side, singing alongside him and playing his flute.

_Boy, don't cry!_

_Your tears take them off your eyes_

_Take my hand!_

_Our smiles will reach they sky_

_You will rise!_

_When life is a disaster_

_You must face it with a laughter_

_Stand up with a bright smile!_

_I know how hard is to stand on your feet_

_I know how hard is to live_

_But all of those chains that are locking your wings_

_Aren't as strong as your will!_

_Boy, don't you cry_

_Your sorrows can heal with a laughter_

_I know how hard is to try_

_But you must say goodbye_

_If you want to move on with your life!  
_

_Boy, don't cry!_

_Your tears take them off your eyes_

_Take my hand!_

_Our smiles will reach they sky_

_You will rise!_

_When life is a disaster_

_You must face it with a laughter_

_Stand up with a bright smile!_

_Boy, don't cry!_

_Your tears take them off your eyes_

_Take my hand!_

_Our smiles will reach they sky_

_You will rise!_

_When life is a disaster_

_You must face it with a laughter_

_Stand up with a bright smile!_

The tears had faded and joy filled the flea market as the crowd joined the song, Don and Jaune kept dancing and singing and playing and the joyful nomads followed their lead.

_Boy, don't cry!_

_Your tears take them off your eyes_

_Take my hand!_

_Our smiles will reach they sky_

_You will rise!_

_When life is a disaster_

_You must face it with a laughter_

_Stand up with a bright smile!_

_Boy, don't cry!_

The cheers and applauds of the crowd covered the market place. Don gave his student and proud hug, something that Jaune treasured dearly. The little kid and his mother thanked the two knights, but it was a pleasure to them to bring a smile to those that needed it.

* * *

The night grew late and Jaune and Don had set up their camp on a hill near the Ursitory's camp. The party was finally over and the exhausted duo was ready for a well-deserved rest.

"Haha. Those nomads really know how to party. I think I'm a bit drunk myself haha". Don said joyfully and a bit fuzzy as he stumbled and sat next to his student on a log while he played with the embers of their campfire.

"Haha. Well, I'm sure those tankers of ale you drank might have to with it".

"Oh, because you didn't have fun?! You don't deceive me; I saw you dancing with that pretty gal. And let me tell you, she is wayyyy out of your league. Haha!".

"Oh, come on! I….yeah, you are probably right, hahaha".

The two sat there smiling, reflecting on their adventure, on their past, present and future. Jaune chuckled a little before breaking the silence.

"Don…I did have fun today" He turned at his master with that smile he was so eager to see. "Thank you".

Don's heart got warm, "Hehe. Anytime kid. I saw how much you needed it. We all need a bit of time for ourselves every now and then".

"Ha. You have no idea".

Don smiled at his student. "So…ready to tell me what had you down?".

Jaune chuckled before taking a deep breath. He then took his scroll out and showed Don the date. "Today is the anniversary…Of the Fall of Beacon".

It was true. Another year since that tragic day. Another year since so many lives were changed forever. Jaune was far from the only one dealing with their own sorrow and their own memories of that day. Across the world, so many people were also celebrating their memories. The memories of their happy days, the memories of their sad ones, the memories of the friends they made and the friends they lost.

Shade Academy became the new home to many Beacon students driven away from home and they all took a moment to remember that day, Coco, Velvet Sun, Neptune and their teammates joined a small festival where Beacon students all paid respects to their fellow students, remembering the reason why they were all there, to protect those that still stood.

Back at Sevillana, Cardin and his team had their own celebration, drinking and toasting for their lost comrades, bowing to keep on fighting to one day make things right for them.

The island of Patch was extremely peaceful, specially at the Xiolong household. The full moon illuminated the sky and Yang and Blake stood on the porch of the house, admiring it. The night that drove them apart was a painful memory to them, but one they overcame together. The memory of what they lost was overshadowed by what they now had and the future they wanted to build by each other's side.

Weiss, Oscar and Qrow joined the memorial set up by Beacon's teachers. Weiss got the honor to light the candles in memory of the fallen that day. Their memories would live on in all of them. Glynda Goodwitch had been working tirelessly trying her best to fix her dear school…so when a young Oscar Pine walked up to her and gave her a far too familiar hug…she couldn't stop crying of nostalgia, specially not after Oscar thanked her for all her kind service…and told her how much Ozpin missed her dearly.

Ren and Nora were like family to Jaune and as such they were treated at the Arc household. Mrs. Arc was full of joy and welcomed her two new children with open arms. Nora and Jaune's sisters got along really quickly and surprisingly Ren and Mr. Arc connected almost immediately over their mutual desire of a bit of peace and quiet. Ren couldn't escape though, as the new brother of the house he became the toy for the girls to play dress up with, even at their age they still acted like little girls, his hair was made for the task though. The Arcs had their specially celebration, they honored the fallen with a feast, to show how thankful they were for the love they still had.

South of Anima, Maria was getting dinner ready when she took a quick glance at her apprentice. Ruby had a smile as she sat on a rock looking at the star filled sky. When the world crashed down, everyone lost hope…but she never lost her conviction, her will to push herself and keep moving forward. She inspired many to follow her…and she came to regret that, but also thank the ones that did, her dear friends. She helped them stand up once more but they never considered that the only reason she could was because they helped her keep going. Their love, their care, their trust, their support, that was what kept her going, that was the driving force of her feet, her desire to help those that needed her and the love of the friends she came to consider family. Ruby sat there, not focus on that day but on what tomorrow could bring.

The same stars in the sky could be seen north of Anima, as Jaune and Don sat contemplating them. Jaune's mind was still anxious…he had a promise to fulfil…he had a demon inside him that he had to let out….but was this the right moment?

"Oh! You saw that, kid? A shooting star! Spectacular". Don pointed at the star with marvel in his eyes and Jaune saw it with awe. "Hehe. That's amazing. You know what they say about shooting stars, right?".

"They grant wishes?".

"Really? Huh, never heard of that. But no, no. Let me tell you a story. When Grandpa Cervantes took me and Miguel on our last vacation together, we saw some and he smiled at us before telling us 'kids, always treasure a shooting star, for they are the souls of those who managed to give their love to the ones they loved in life'…Hehe, grandpa, every time I see one I do just as he said, keep that love in my heart…he was a wise man…a bit crazy if you ask me haha, one time….".

"WHY DID SHE HAVE TO LEAVE?!"

The hill was silence…and just tears dropping and the sound of the flames could be heard.

"Every day…I've tried, I really have, Don! I thought I was better, I thought it wasn't going to hurt anymore but….every day I keep asking myself, why?…even thought I know the answer, I still keep asking me that question…Every day I wonder if I was the one who should have died that night….She was kind, she was brave, she was a true a hero and I….Why do they keep saying it?!...Ruby…Cardin….Why do they keep saying that she would have been proud of me? HOW COULD SHE IF SHE DEA…".

A quick hug silenced the broken boy. The loving and supporting embrace of his mentor…who no matter what happened was going to be there for him. "It's ok…It's ok, son".

Jaune burst into tears, burying his face in Don's chest. "…She…I just miss her so much".

"I know…I know, lad, but she is gone….I know how much it hurts but it's time, Jaune….You can't change what happened, I'm sure you already know that". Don softly pushed Jaune away from him to look at the boy in the eyes, "Lad, of course she is proud of you, but that doesn't matter if you aren't proud of yourself. You will never be able to move forward if you don't see your own value. You want to know why I choose you as my apprentice? Why amongst all your friends you were the one that caught my attention? I knew you weren't the strongest, I knew you weren't the bravest, but what I saw, that flame I keep telling you about, I saw a dreamer, I saw someone with the will to move forward and reach the bright future he always wanted for him and his loved ones, I saw a young man that understood that a dream only truly dies when you make it a reality…..I know how hard it is to lose….I would be lying if I said Miguel's memory doesn't haunt my dreams every now and then…But Pyrrha's memory is not something that should eat you inside, is something you should cherish, is something that should drive you forward. She is gone, lad…I won't lie to you, but she will live on in you…Never let her memory die…but don't let it prevent you from living either…Its time".

Jaune hugged his mentor again…crying until he finally ran dry. The two hugged until late at night as the flames were consumed and the ashes became cold.

* * *

Beacon Academy…The blue sky shined again…Team RWBY played….Oscar smiled…Ren and Nora danced…and Jaune was in the distance, sitting on a bench watching the joy in his friends' smiles.

He saw them with nostalgia….he saw them until he felt a person sitting next to him….

"It's wonderful isn't it?" The voice said…but Jaune didn't respond. "It fills my heart with so much joy seeing them so happy…I really miss them".

"We all miss you too, Pyrrha".

Pyrrha smiled as Jaune turned around to look at her. Her hair no longer hid her emerald green eyes which had a shimmer on them…tears? No, it was just the bright light of her kind soul.

"I've missed you too, Jaune…more than you can imagine…". She grabbed his hands and he could feel the warm of her skin. "You have no idea how much I have... and how much I wish I hadn't hurt you so much".

"You didn't hurt me…".

Pyrrha had a regretful look on her face, "…But I did….I've seen how much pain I brought you".

"You brought even more joy to my life…I wouldn't be who I am if it wasn't for you…It's just….there are so many things I couldn't tell you while you…Like how much you meant to me, or how sorry I am for the way a treated you sometimes, or how much I thank you for being there for me, or…".

Pyrrha blushed and tighten the grip on her hands, "You can't keep doing this to yourself….Jaune….it's time".

He didn't respond, just a tear running on his cheek.

She washed the tear carefully…before sharing a kiss with him. A soft kiss with a lovely warm to it.

"Jaune…it's time to move on….I'll be fine, I promise. You haven't realized it but I live every time you speak of me…and die again when you cry. From my heaven I'll always be there to protect you…but it's time to say goodbye…. Promise me…Promise me you'll have that smile that I love so much…Promise me you will give your all….Promise me you will fall in love again…Promise me you will live with joy in your heart…Promise me…that you will be happy…Please".

Jaune kissed her again, a surprise and kind gesture she wasn't expecting. He pulled back a bit and lowered his head, "I promise….that I'll never forget you…".

Pyrrha was filled with sadness "Jaune…".

"But…." She was surprised. Jaune lifted his head, his tears were gone as his blue eyes met her green ones. "I promise….that my life will keep going even if you aren't there….I promise that I'll never give up…I promise that I will remember you but I also promise to let you go…I'll keep you in my heart always, cherishing your memory….but it's time...It's time to live my life".

Pyrrha smiled with tear on her eyes. "…Thank you…I'm so happy, Jaune".

That beautiful sunset at Beacon was the stage…for their last kiss.

* * *

Don woke up from the sunrise light hitting his eyes. As he stood up, he was graced with the sight of his young apprentice…with a bright smile.

Jaune was sitting on a log contemplating the sunrise of a new chapter of his life. Hearing the footsteps of his mentor behind him, he kept his face towards the horizon while addressing him. "I think I'm ready".

"Hehe…For what?".

Jaune turned around with a big smile on his face, "To keep going".

Don got a proud smile on his face. Nothing gave him more hope than hearing those words.

As Jaune kept smiling the wind flew a small maple leaf that landing right on top of his hand. He looked at it with awe but soon the smile came back to his face. He grabbed the leaf and let it go, letting it fly away to the horizon. Nothing made her happier.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you everyone for reading.
> 
> A bit of lore: The Ursitory are meant to be Remnant's version of the Romani people, I was originally going to refer to them as gypsies however after doing research I learned that the term can be use in a derogatory way and the more accepted one is Romani, the problem was that Romani is a name with heavy historical ties to the real world and thus doesnt fit RWBY, my solution? Romani folkore of course! The Ursitory are 3 spirits of fate in Romani folklore who together decided the fate of a new born child, the nomads are named after them as a reference to the group.
> 
> The song Jaune sings is an english translated cover version of the song "Deja de Llorar" by the Spanish folk metal band "Mago de Oz" (Wizard of Oz...super fitting for RWBY), is not a 1:1 translation and I took a lot of liberties on the lyrics but I think it came out fine. For you Mago de Oz fans, take a closer look at the titles of each chapter, you'll notice they are all songs from the band.
> 
> That's all I have for you today. As always I will appreciate any feedback both positive and negative. Next chapter will be the begining of the end, join me next time as we dive in Don's past in the final arc of this story, the Lost Knight Arc.


	11. Singing of the Dark Moon

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Everyone has their own demons. As Jaune and Don get lost in the woods, they begin to get haunted by the ghosts of their past.

**Chapter XI**

**Singing of the Dark Moon**

The deep woods of the Stained Coast Line were green oceans of plants and trees. It was impressive how a simple walk was all it took to go from the green pastures to a cold jungle. Massive and ancient trees as far as the eye could see, to the adventurous spirits it was an enchanted forest ripped straight from the pages of any fairy tale, but to the unaware explores it was an emerald maze where nothing was as it seemed. The country of the lost some called it, of course those were the words of the most superstitious ones, in truth it only took a good map, a compass and a sharp mind to travel across the deep woods, and no one had a sharper and more focus mind than our two heroes.

"What I'm saying is that I didn't see any romantic interaction between them, ok!?".

"They couldn't have been more into each other! Don, their relationship is what the book is all about!".

"Pff! No is not! The princess wanted to prove she was a great warrior, all she had with the stable boy was a strong friendship! Plus, he rejected her!".

"For the last time! He did not reject her; he didn't give her a straight answer, there is a difference! Why are you so stubborn?!".

"Why do you want to see romance everywhere?!"

"I don't! but it was so on the nose!".

"What's on the nose is that you are still a hopeless romantic!".

"And you are a bitter old man who doesn't believe in love!"

"How dare you?! Of course, I believe in love! I just don't like your precious little ship!".

"Aha! So you admit it!….wait…Don, we lost the path, where are we going?".

"What? You are following me? I was following you!".

"You have the map!".

"But you have the compass!".

"We don't have a compass!".

"Don't you kids always have a fancy scroll now?!".

"With what towers you think that's going to work?!".

"What use are those damn things then?!".

"You know…video games and…That's not the point!".

Jaune and Don found themselves surrounded by the green landscape, a massive maze of trees. The two had been walking since dawn right after spending a night camping, discussing the lasted book they read and of course drinking their hearts out…in hindsight maybe the beer didn't help their orientation but who knows?

Jaune picked up the map, placed it on a large rock and tried his best to figure out just where exactly they were, a task easier said than done, reading a map is hard enough, reading a map full of silly drawings courtesy of the 6-year-old he had as a mentor was even worse.

"For the love of….Ok, the sun came out from…" Jaune tried his best but the forest was just too dense, it was hard to even see where the sun was. "Eh….that way! No, wait….that way!...I think…arg!". The boy tried as hard as he could to remember the lessons from Professor Goodwitch's survivor class…a class he spent a lot of his time sleeping in, trying to hit on Weiss or running away from wasps, "I hate you past me".

The heroes kept on walking, and walking and walking for hours until both of them just couldn't walk anymore. As usual Jaune began to become frustrated and annoyed while the jolly old man kept his cheery attitude.

"Come on lad, it isn't a trek in the woods if your feet don't feel like fire!" Don said with a big smile.

"Just…let's take a rest…please".

"Rest? Huh! A true knight can march for days without a single drop of water, my boy! Let me tell you a story. When I was 23, I ventured the deserts of Vacuo with nothing but a walking stick and a bag of dried plumbs! I then faced the horrible…." And so, Don kept going and going with another of his famous stories. Jaune had grown use to them by now but that didn't make them any less annoying at times, then again a part of him actually enjoyed them, Don could go on for hours telling the tales of his grandiose adventures, all the damsels he rescued, all the beasts he slayed, every journey more epic than the last.

"And in that lost island, the mermaid faunus surrounded me, they took turns trying to seduce me, but I'm a man of 1 woman, kid, I hated to break their hearts but my sweet Maria is a hundred times more beautiful than any of them!".

A few more hours passed and Don had lost himself in his tales again. Smiling at his proclamations of true greatness.

"But when the Manticore was getting ready to shoot its flames, I drew my shield and bravely protected the orphanage, they were so thankful, they even renamed it in my name!".

They climbed mountains, crossed rivers and walked through mud and Don just kept going and going.

"The Grimm surrounded me and the bastards had me unarmed, Oh hoho, but they soon learned to fear the might of my fists!".

Another hour passed and the two had grown exhausted, but that didn't decrease Don's enthusiasm, the same couldn't be said about Jaune though.

"And that's! why they call me 'pants of steel' Cervantes! What you think about that, boy?".

Jaune had an irritated look on his face, he was walking with the motions and had his arms dangling in defeat. "Yeah, another good one, Don…".

"Of course, it is, now this reminds me of the time".

"HOW about with take a break?!" Jaune begged with daggers in his eyes as if he was one story away from killing his mentor…they were in the middle of the forest…no one had to know…

"Fine, fine. Look there is a rock we can sit on and rest a bit, you baby".

With a sigh of relief, Jaune sat on the rock and pulled out the map again, desperately trying to figure out where they were, meanwhile Don was doing the smart thing and waste the little water they had left refreshing his armpits.

"Don what are you… _sigh,_ forget it". Jaune just let it be, if they didn't find a way out of this forest, they were dead anyways, he wasn't going to find the path by getting upset. Don sat next to him, all refreshed and with his trademark smile.

"Anything yet, lad?".

"No. I don't get it. The mountain was here and we saw the sun, there should be a village east of the mountain and the map says we are on the road…but there is nothing, no signs, no road, I mean, the forest should have ended here". Jaune explained, frustrated and concerned but he did his best to try to relax.

Throughout his journey he had come to understand that he needed to calm down, frustration was never the way he could reach his goals. His master was the one to teach him that. A positive attitude could take you a long way. Jaune took a deep breath and did just that, calm down, think positive and just enjoy the ride, he was standing in a gorgeous forest after all, an experience many just dream about. His master had taken the map and tried to help out, always with that bright smile and childlike enthusiasm. Jaune smiled at the sight of his mentor turning the map upside down trying to figure out a path. He had been hearing all those stories of heroism, tales of adventure that he himself always dreamed about. The story of a brave knight traveling the world rescuing damsels, fighting monsters and saving the people, it was childish, he came to see it pretty quickly on his first day at Beacon…but it was also magical in a way, chasing a dream and making it true. Jaune did enjoy the stories from time to time, no matter how impossible they sounded they were all entertaining. He soon got an idea, maybe another story could help him relax if he tried to enjoy it. He took a quick look and saw Don's shield resting on a tree, its emblem interested him enough to want to hear that story.

"Don, can I ask you something?".

"Shoot".

"Why is your emblem like that? Why a burning windmill?".

Jaune sat there waiting for the epic tale of glory behind the shield's emblem….but only got silence. He turned to see his master and to his surprise, the cheery smile had banished and a dead gaze fixed in the shield took its place.

"D-Don?"

"W-What?...Oh, right". Don snapped out of it; it was as if he was lost in his own thoughts for a moment. He chuckled a bit awkwardly while rubbing the back of his neck with some anxiety. "That ah…well, is not that good of a story, really, hehe. Maybe I'll tell it to you later".

"I mean, why not now?". Jaune pushed, he was insistent but bugging his mentor wasn't his intentions, he was just a bit curious. "Did something happen?".

Don sat with a serious look, staring straight at the shield. "No, no, it's just….We all have our demons, lad. Mine…I rather keep them behind me, that's all". He said before walking towards the shield and picking it up, almost as if trying to hide it from his apprentice.

"Maybe we should get going. Look, the river passes near the village, if we follow it, we can get there without a path. Come on" Don answered much to Jaune's confusion. The old man called for his apprentice again to continue their journey…and the smile was still gone.

An awkward silence plagued the forest, the cheerful stories were gone, no jokes or songs, Jaune just couldn't understand. He had seen Don upset before…but this was different. A simple mention of the emblem was enough to shut him down like that? How? It was so uncharacteristic of Don to lose his smile and cheerfulness. Jaune knew for a fact that his master was a man of positive attitude, not many things could bring him down, that was just the sort of man he was….or at least, that's what he thought. In truth, there was a lot of things Jaune didn't know about his mentor, he soon came to realize that the two had been traveling for months together and still there was so little he knew about him. He admired that smile of his even if it was a bit annoying at times, but he barely knew the man behind it, all he had of his past were those stories of adventure and glory…and they weren't that reliable either.

The two kept on walking in silence following the river for half an hour. It was pass midday when they finally reached the place the village was supposed to be…and to their surprise, there was nothing at a first glance. The river itself was covered with vegetation; vines had grown over it.

"I don't get it; the village should be here". Jaune said, perplexed. Had they read the map wrong? It didn't seem likely, a few landmarks were still clearly visible, like the nearby mountain they had climbed earlier and river they had been following. It didn't make any sense.

Jaune tried to figure things out on the map when he heard Don's voice.

"Kid, come here, now!".

As the boy approached, he saw how his master had cut some vines with his sword, exposing what laid underneath.

"That's…a wall".

Don kept cutting vines revealing more, "It's a whole building, the vines are even crawling through the windows".

Jaune ran ahead a bit, trying to check the surrounding area. To his horror, his fear was confirmed, there were more and more buildings all covered in vines, the streets had grass, vines and moss everywhere. The entire village had been claimed by nature.

"It's…It's gone…" Jaune said with sadness in his voice. It wasn't the first time he had seen a village like this. Ren's home town was the same, a shadow of its former self after the Grimm ravaged everything in sight.

Don put his hand on his apprentice's shoulder, trying his best to comfort him. There was nothing to be done but he was still not willing to let sorrow take his protégé back into a dark place. "Come on, lad. Maybe if we follow the river, we coul…HOLY CRAP WHAT'S THAT?!".

The two brave heroes got startled by the sight of a figure coming out of one of the buildings. Was it a Grimm? An animal?...not, it was something a bit more….disturbing.

An old man walked out of the shadows holding a basket of what seemed to be expired bread. He had an empty look on his face and walked dragging his feet. His clothes were all in rags and an agonizing lament came out of his mouth. What was more bizarre was that he was covered in vines, they were tied around his arms, legs, torso, neck and head and he kept dragging them on the floor as he walked aimlessly. He began to hit himself against a wall, walking back and forward against it as if trying to find the door.

Jaune and Don rushed at him, trying to see if the man was ok.

"Sir! Stop! Stop!". Jaune tried to hold the man to stop him from hurting himself, a foul smell came from both the rotten moldy bread and the man himself but Jaune had to help him. As he shook the old man, he dropped the bread basket and Jaune began to inspect him. "Don, look at this!".

Jaune sat the man down and the two took a closer look, the man had a blank stare and didn't even acknowledge the two travelers.

Jaune grabbed the vines tied to the man and showed them to his mentor. "What is this?". At first glance the vines seemed completely normal, green vines with heart shaped leaves, but a closer look showed an odd black color merged with the vine and through it, small bits of light traveled like an electrical current.

They began to take the vines off, starting with the neck and head and quickly cutting vines from the rest of his body until every bit was gone. The vines had left marks on the man's skin. He was free… but he was still in a trance. The blank stare remained and his lament kept going. Jaune quickly gave him water before trying to use his semblance on him, but it was to no avail. The man had so little aura left, even after unlocking it, Jaune's boost barely did anything.

"Come on, Come on!" Jaune said as he desperately tried to help the man, he was so focused he didn't notice the movement coming from the building behind him. Don drew his sword and quickly alerted his apprentice "Kid! Watch out!".

A hand reached and grabbed Jaune's shoulder but Don managed to take it off him and quickly got ready to strike the creature down….just to soon realize the hand belonged to a young woman who just like the old man was covered in vines with a blank stare and making a lamenting sound. The woman laid on her back and weakly tried to reach as if begging for help.

The situation continued to escalate over time. Jaune and Don kept finding the villagers, all under the same conditions. Covered in vines, barely responsive, all malnourished and dehydrated and with their aura levels dangerously low. Many were still alive, thankfully…but not all were that fortunate. Men, women and children, the vines seemed to only spare the animals, only the humans and faunus of the village were being targeted by them. Don kept on bringing water for the survivors, while Jaune made a makeshift nursery in what seemed to once had been a bar, gathering as many people as they could find. It was all they could do, the victims kept being unresponsive, they drank the water but any food they put on their mouths just stayed there as the villagers remained in their trance. They ended up having to tie them as they kept on standing or crawling and moving aimlessly.

"We have to take them out of here, this place isn't safe". Jaune said.

"I saw a carriage but there are too many to take them all and where could we even take them?".

"I don't know, but Don, anywhere is better than here, look". Jaune pointed at the ground as a few vines began to move really slowly, as if searching for something to lash on to. Jaune and Don wasted no time to rush outside and cut as many vines as they could to clear the nursery of any threat. But this was nothing but a temporary measure, the entire village was covered in vines, they could have spent all day cutting every single one of them and still it wouldn't have mattered, the vines kept growing and lurking.

"This is impossible. Maybe if we put them on a boat, we could travel the river", Jaune suggested, it was a fair plan but still had its risks, the fact that they didn't know the river, how dangerous it could be or even where it headed. Don considered it…until a detail he noticed gave him light to another option.

"Kid, come here. Look at this" Don called for his apprentice, "Look at the pattern. The vines all come from one direction, look", he pointed out, showing Jaune how all vines seemed to come from uphill, it was as if they spilled down the village. "I bet you that's the point of origin".

"What are you suggesting?".

"Lad, we can't take this people somewhere else on our own, but, if we follow the vines we might find where they start, cut them from the root and get rid of them. If we can't take this people somewhere safe then let's make this a safe place".

Jaune gave it a thought, it really seemed like the only viable option, even though it was clearly the riskiest, but they were huntsmen after all, risking their lives for those that needed them was their job. "Ok, let's do it".

With a mission on mind, Jaune and Don barricaded the nursery with the victims inside. It wouldn't keep them safe forever but it would buy them time to eradicate the vines. With the people safe, the two headed up hill to face the source of this threat.

It didn't take them long to walk uphill, but it wasn't an easy task either. The road was covered in vines and they had to walk carefully as to not get themselves tangled on them, as they got higher, they began to notice how the vines were becoming blacker the closer they got. Cutting their way uphill they finally made it to the top and were greeted with the sight of a ruined mansion. The building had vines coming out of its windows, white walls and even from over the roof. The vines were larger the closer they got to the mansion and trees had grown from under it, damaging many sections. It was the sort of damage a building would get after decades of abandonment, but Jaune noticed that if that was case, the villagers wouldn't have been alive, whatever happened to this place was fairly recent.

"That place gives me the creeps" Don said, the creepy sight of the abandoned mansion was enough so send shivers to the bravest souls.

Jaune took a quick glance at it, inspecting it before they were to approach, "Going around it will be hard, the forest is too thick, but maybe…." He began to say until he noticed something. The front wooden door of the abandoned mansion…slowly opened on its own, and from behind it, Jaune could see something, a small hand. "Don, there is someone there! Hey!".

"Kid, where are you going?!".

Jaune rushed to the mansion, driven only by his desire to help the person inside, he was afraid they were another victim trapped inside the building, he had to help them. He ran until he managed to reach the door but as soon as he opened it…something grabbed him and pulled him inside, slamming the door behind him.

"JAUNE!" Don ran as fast as he could to his apprentice's aid, sword in hand he pulled the door open and rushed inside the mansion….and everything went dark. Don kept running and running and running…but the inside of the mansion was nothing but pitch-blackness, he could feel the floor though, grass everywhere. Don turned around confused but even the door was gone. He couldn't understand, it was around 3pm and still darkness covered his entire surroundings, he was disorientated, not a light anywhere, just the smell and sensation of grass under his feet. Suddenly…a beacon of light in the distance. It was impossible, the light was miles away yet he was supposed to be inside a building, but it was the only guide he had so he went to it, rushing worried for Jaune's safety.

As he approached, Don could see a bit better his surroundings, somehow, he had ended in an open field during a pitch-black night and the smell of smoke grew stronger as he approached the light. He kept on running and running and running for what seemed an eternity….and then he saw it. Don slowed down and began to walk slowly as he laid his eyes on a far too familiar sight…"No…it….it cant be….no, no, no….". He fell to his knees with his eyes wide open, stunned by the sight…of a burning windmill.

* * *

Jaune slammed his chin on the floor, he quickly sat shaking his arms in a panic, trying to take off whatever was it that grabbed him.

"AH! Get it off! Get it….off", There was nothing on his arm…but even more confusing…there weren't gauntlets either, just a pair of leather gloves he hadn't seen in a long, long time. "What the…". Jaune sat there in confusion, inspecting himself further he notices that his armor was also replaced, he was wearing that old gear he used to have, that chest plate that barely fit him, that low grade huntsmen outfit he put together himself with things he found in his house. It was the armor he use to wear back in….And then it hit him, Jaune looked around, he was disoriented, the door he come from was gone, he sat in a hallway with many doors, it took him a moment to recognize it, "This is….no".

Jaune stood up, the sound of laughter coming from the door in front of him sent shivers to his skin, he knew those laughs. He quickly opened the door and rushed inside. His eyes were blinded by the sun light coming from the window, but once his vision cleared, he saw it. It was his dorm. Somehow, someway, Jaune was standing in a place he thought he would never see again, Beacon Academy. "It's….no, this can't be…Don. DON! Where are y…".

"Eh…do you mind not yelling? I'll like to study for Oobleck's test, please".

Jaune turned around, the room was empty a second ago, but now, someone was sitting on one of the beds. "R-Ren?".

"Ugh! Boring! I say we YELL MORE! WOHO! COME ON, JAUNE! YELL WITH ME!".

"Please, I need to focus".

Jaune stood there in shock, "Nora?…how? When? Where did you come from?".

Ren and Nora shared a confused look, "Eh…Mistral?" Ren answered, raising his brow at the odd question.

"Oh, I think he wants to talk about the bird and bees. Ok, look, when mama Lancer and papa Nevermore love each other very much…".

"Please, stop".

"No! You are not getting it! You are not supposed to be here!" Jaune yelled in anger, he couldn't understand, this couldn't be possible, they couldn't be there, he couldn't be there.

Ren and Nora looked at each other again, Nora began to chuckle and soon that chuckle turned into a laugh. "Hahahah. Well, of course we shouldn't be here, silly. Why would we?...after all…you left us".

The light coming from the windows soon began to deem. A rapid sunset began to make the room dark. Nora smiled at Jaune and tears began to come from her wide eyes. "It just took an old crazy man for you to forget about us?".

Jaune's breath began to rise as Ren stood up. "I guess a life of adventure is more important. Tell me, are we that worthless to you? Do you even care to know if we made it to Vale? As far as you know we could have died on our way there".

Jaune slowly walked backwards towards the door as Ren and Nora moved towards him one step at the time.

"How will you protect us, Jaune? When you aren't even there?".

"He ditched us like nothing, Nora. That's how much he cares, that's how much he wants to protect us".

"But we were family, weren't we, Jaune? So why send us away?".

"Why Jaune?".

"Why Jaune?".

"Why Jaune?".

"Why JAunE?".

Jaune finally reached the door, desperately trying to open it as Ren and Nora slowly approached him.

"Answer, Jaune".

"Are you going to let us die too?".

"Just like you did…her?".

Jaune stopped…. paralyzed…those things were getting closer and he stood there, immobile.

* * *

Don was mesmerized by the flames. Tears of sorrow had covered his face but he didn't realize it, he just knelt there in shock. "No….".

He could hear every wood plank cracking, every window breaking and the rage of the flames growing. He covered his ears and tried to look away, the memories were far too painful…but even with his ear covered, he could hear it clearly.

"Help!". Don's eyes got wide; he was surprised by that voice. It couldn't be.

The old man ran as fast as he could towards the fiery inferno, kicking the door open he entered the windmill. "MIGUEL!", He yelled as the flames ate the interior and blazing wood fell from the ceiling. "MARGARITA! MIGUEL!", he kept calling rushing through the building in a panic, the smoke began to affect him, he found it hard to breath and the heat just kept building up. The wooden columns around him collapsed under their own weight, the flame's rage consumed everything on its path.

Don kept going deeper into the burning windmill, he rushed to every room, every corner, getting burned many times in the process. The fire kept growing more and more out of control. He ran upstairs as the staircase quickly turned into embers, his cape began to catch fire but he didn't pay mind to it, he was lost in his despair. "MIGUEL! MARGARI…",

"Help!". Don heard the voice again coming from a room, he rushed as fast as he could, his cape slowly burning.

He finally reached the room, "Margarita! MARGARITA!" He yelled, trying to see amongst the smoke cloud, but it was too late, a burning column laid a top a body and a burning lifeless hand rested on the floor. "No…no, no, PLEASE NO!", Don fell to his knees in despair, losing his hat in the process, the flames slowly crawling up his cape but once again, he didn't notice, what caught his attention though…was the cry of a baby coming from behind him.

Don turned around slowly, facing the baby cradle, he struggled to stand up but he did as quickly as he could. The cries came from inside a lump of blankets, Don whimpered and cried as he slowly unwrapped the baby to see her little face.

"She is beautiful, isn't she?".

That voice sent shivers to Don's spine, his hands were shaking as he slowly stood up and turned around.

"And yet…look what you did to her".

The figure was a man, covered in flames with his flesh melting, he had his face down and covered by Don's hat.

"You made a promise to me….That you would protect her. That you would always be there for her…You would be her hero, her brave knight…bunch of lies again, Donny?".

Don kept shaking, he struggled to talk, "Mi-Miguel….I…".

"You can't escape from who you are, Dominique" Miguel lifted his face, his skull could be seen clearly amongst the melted flesh and only one good eye was left, looking at Don, judging the soul of his little brother. "Sooner or later, your ghosts will catch up…and drag you to hell with the rest us".

The flames on Don's cape finally accelerated, quickly engulfing him in fire, Don tried to put it out unsuccessfully. Miguel just pulled a stool and sat there, watching as Don kept screaming.

"AHHHHHH!".

* * *

Ren and Nora kept walking towards Jaune, their hands now wielded their weapons. Jaune kept standing still with his back towards them. They were smiling, enjoying his fear, that crippling guilt that had him paralyzed…or at least, that's what they thought.

"Like her? What are you talking about?".

They stopped, surprised by the response.

Jaune smiled and chuckled a bit. "I didn't abandon her; I would have gone with her if I could have. But she protected me…The same way I want to protect you".

Ren and Nora stepped back with surprise on their faces.

"Of course I worry about you, and I miss you more than you can imagine. There isn't a day in which I don't wonder how are you guys doing. I wonder in which trouble Nora got herself into while having fun, or if Ren has been taking care of her, haha, I'm sure he tried to talk her out of it but when Nora has an idea, well, no one can stop her. I wonder if my sisters are treating them well, I bet they are playing with Ren's hair but they better let Nora join in, hehe".

The two began to get angry, clenching their teeth and grabbing their weapons tighter.

"I do feel bad for leaving, but every time I do, I remember how much support they gave me. In my darkest times, I know I can count on them, they are my teammates…my family".

The two lowered their weapons, the thing that looked like Nora smiled and began to taunt him. "Ha! Family!? The family you abandoned!? We can't count on you. You are weak, you are a pathetic excuse for a huntsman that got where he is through lies and the sacrifice of others! Hehehehe, HAHAHAH! What will you even do when you see her again?! Will you be able to protect us from her?!". She pointed behind him and as he turned, the wall was pull from outside, the debris turned to ember, scorched into a dark void. The entire dorm slowly faded with the embers until Jaune stood in a pitch-black room by himself.

From the darkness, a bright amber eye shinned and a shadowy figure slowly approached. He heard a laugh before a ring of fire surrounded him. Jaune reached for his sword but it was gone, banished. From the flames, the shadowy figure emerged, the closer she got the clearer he could see her.

"They are right you know? You are still nothing but a pathetic kid playing hero". She walked closer and closer to him. "Protect them? You can't even protect yourself".

Jaune was nervous, he even stepped back but Cinder was already at arm's reach. Her Grimm arm caressed his chin with her claws. "You know far too well that I will take everything and everyone from you…and there is nothing you can do about it. Your beloved friends, that family you love so much, Ruby, I will turn every single one of them to ash and you…"

"I will fight her and stop her".

Cinder was surprised by the response. "No, you will die like the pathetic…".

"We will fight her and stop her…me, my friends, my family, Ruby, all the ones I love, I'll stand with them to stop her…and we will stop her".

Cinder was enraged, she leaped back into the shadows and just as fast as they emerged, the flames banished. Jaune was once again standing in a pitch-black room, but not for long, as the view shifted once more, he was now standing on Beacon Academy's courtyard, the place was in ruins, the scene was far too familiar, it was the place he last saw her.

"But stopping Cinder won't bring me back, now would it?".

Jaune clenched his fist at the sound…of Pyrrha's voice. "You can go wild on all those monsters and get your precious revenge, but that won't bring me back". She began to walk around him in circles, her sword in hand, "You may think Cinder is responsible for what happened to me, but it was you, you are responsible….".

Jaune was angered and frustrated….but frustration will never let you reach your goals, Jaune took a deep breath and calmed down. "I'm not".

"Yes, you are. Had you…".

"Had I gone to her, everything would have been the same or worse".

"It was your fault".

"It wasn't. She chose to fight and save my life, whose fault was that doesn't matter, that's not the point of what she did".

"You couldn't help her".

"No, but thanks to her I lived and I will continue to live helping as many as I can, no one will suffer like she did as long as I stand!".

"You are useless!".

"I'm not".

"You got her killed!".

"I did not".

"It should have been you!".

"It shouldn't have been anyone".

The creature launched at him, going for a backstab. "You'll never get her back!".

Jaune turned quickly and grabbed the blade, stopping it with his bare hand. The creature was shocked as the hand didn't even bleed.

"But I'll always have her in my heart. Her memory lives through me. She is alive as long as I remember her….but you….how dare you wear her face", with anger in his eyes, Jaune broke the blade with his hand which shattered as if made of glass. The cracks extended quickly over the shocked creature's body and even faster on the surrounding area and soon enough, everything around Jaune just collapsed into millions of pieces, shattering and banishing.

Jaune was laying on his back, his arm extended up as if reaching for the ceiling of the mansion. He sat quickly and looked around. They entered the mansion at around 3pm, but now sunset was approaching, what seemed like a couple of minutes was actually a few hours. He grabbed his head in pain while he kept looking around. Near his hand, some vines were now withered. Jaune stood up worried about his old mentor, "Don! DON!".

As he called for him he took a quick glance at the staircase of the mansion and on a corner of it, he saw something odd…it was a little girl hiding behind the railings, as soon as she noticed she had been spotted, she ran away through a hallway in fear.

"Hey! Wait!".

* * *

Don opened his eyes, breathing heavily in a panic, fear filled him completely and he immediately checked his body trying to extinguish the flames…but they were gone, he was intact. He was baffled, he was even more disoriented than before. The windmill had banished as well, not even the smell of smoke was left and he was sitting on a patch of grass.

"I…I don't…I gotta get out of here, I gotta get out of here, I GOTTA…".

"Hahahaha. Always the coward, eh? Cervantes?".

A voice came out of the shadows, startling Don, making him shiver and increasing his panic. He turned around in all directions trying to find the source but all he could see was darkness. Don stood up, stumbling a little and continued turning.

"W-WHERE ARE YOU?!".

"It was always the same with you. Another excuse for being a lazy moron. Always a new story, always another lie, always blaming others for your own failures, when the one you should have blamed….".

Don saw a figure, his fear turned to anger and he rushed towards it, but as soon as he reached it, he smashed his face against a surface, falling to the ground on his back. When he lifted his head once more…he saw his reflection on a massive mirror.

"…Was yourself.".

Don was in shock seeing his own reflection in the mirror as the voice kept taunting him.

"You see it now? That decrepit old man? That is the face of a scum. That is the face of a liar, the face of a selfish, lazy idiot who brings nothing but pain to those stupid enough to care about him. You see it now? This is who you are Cervantes".

Tears ran from Don's eyes as he crawled towards the mirror, he was startled a bit when a figure emerged from behind it. It was soon clear that the mirror wasn't such thing, it was a shield and its wielder was a knight. The knight wore an armor so shiny, even in this darkness it was a beacon of blinding light. The knight took off his helm, tossing it to the side and revealing his face to Don.

"Ro-Roberto?".

"Hello, Cervantes. Still a useless moron I see". The knight said before smashing Don's face with the might of his fist, making him fall on his back again.

"You really thought you could just leave everything behind!? Betray your loved ones and that somehow you'll be a hero?!". He kicked him in the face, his steel boot caused him to spit blood.

"Run away as much as you want, Cervantes. You were always a coward! Even as a useless old man you are still a scared child running from the big scary real world!".

Don struggled to stand up, his legs were shaking but he still found the strength to stand and wash off the blood from his mouth. "She…She meant the world to me".

"Ha! Is that why you left her to rot?".

Don was filled with anger, he rushed with all his hate placed in fist and punched as hard as he could, but the knight blocked the punch with his shield and what was more, suddenly Don felt the damage himself, it was as if an invisible fist punched him in the stomach. Don fell to his knees, struggling to breath.

The knight walked towards him and Don raised his face, pained, exhausted, ashamed.

"You can't escape from who you are, Cervantes".

* * *

"Please! Wait!". Jaune yelled as he ran up stares chasing the little girl. He was quick enough to reach the top and see her entering a room. The hallway was covered in vines coming from all sides, crawling from the planks on the floor, the walls and the ceiling, but Jaune charged forward. He made it to the room but to his surprise, the door was locked, he could have sworn the girl went through it and he didn't see it close but still, it was shut. He wasted no time and forced his way in, smashing the door down with his raw strength.

He was expecting to find the little girl there, hiding somewhere…but the room was empty. Just some furniture covered in dust and vegetation growing everywhere. He was confused but he saw the girl coming in that room, he was certain. The room was an old office, he explored a bit, trying to see if he could find some place she could be hidden. He couldn't shake from his head the way the girl acted. She wasn't walking aimlessly, she reacted to him, she even ran, that was the complete opposite of how the villagers acted.

"Please, come out. I won't hurt you, you can trust me", He tried to call but was met with only silence. Jaune began to check a bookcase, trying to see if there was a hidden passage or something behind it. As he tried to move the bookcase the entire thing shook loudly and some books began to fall, one hit the desk next to it and Jaune's attention was caught by the sound of broken glass from a fallen picture frame. He knelt to pick it up, breaking the picture frame to get a better look at the picture, it depicted a wealthy family, a man with a big mustache, an elegant woman and a baby in her arms. He stood up slowly and noticed that the picture was taken in the mansion's main hall where he had just woken up. This family must have lived here.

"Who are you?" He began to wonder until a voice behind him startled him.

"How did you do it?".

"HOLY CRA…", He jumped surprised but soon recovered his composure at the sight of a little girl with chocolate hair and green eyes hiding behind a chair, "Oh, Oh there you are, hehe. You scared me".

"How did you do it?", the girl asked again.

Jaune got a little bit closer, he was a bit confused by the question, "How did I do what?".

"How you got free?". The girl asked.

Jaune stood there, he reflected for a few seconds and then gave the little girl his honest answer, "I…I guess, it's because I made peace with my past…No one can use it to hurt me, it doesn't haunt me anymore". He answered, smiling as he caressed Pyrrha's scarf with nostalgia, not haunted by the terrible guilt, but treasuring those beautiful memories that give him strength to keep going.

The girl came out from her hiding spot a little, she was curious yet cautious.

"Oh, it's ok, I'm here to help, don't be afraid, come". Jaune approached the little girl slowly, offering his hand kindly. The girl was still afraid but she was starting to grow more confident, slowly coming out from behind the chair and moving towards Jaune.

As he got closer, Jaune began to notice something peculiar, the little girl…was a bit translucent, it was as if she was a hologram, he got distracted trying to wrap his head around what he was seeing when suddenly, her hand grabbed his wrist and pulled him aggressively.

"Hey! What are you…" He stopped, the girl was gone once more, but what was more, the entire room was different. The office looked brand new, no dust, no plants, everything was well organized and clean. Jaune looked around and noticed that not even the books he threw were on the floor anymore. The desk even had a turned-on lamp which meant the house even had electricity. Jaune was a bit shocked, but he didn't have time to understand his position when two men entered the room.

"I told you we are busy, Petunia! Take a sit, Oakley".

"Thank you, Mr. Woodberry".

The two men walked around the office, not even noticing Jaune's presence even though he was standing right in front of them. Jaune tried to get their attention, but one of them even walked through him as if he was a ghost. He was unable to do anything but watch. Jaune was confused but soon realized he still had the picture in his hand and a quick look made him notice that the man with the mustache was the same one siting right in front of him, the man referred to as Mr. Woodberry.

"Whiskey?".

"Oh, no, I couldn't".

"Come on, I really need a drink after the few months I had, drink up".

"Ok, thank you, sir".

"Otis!"

"I said, NOT NOW, PETUNIA!". The man yelled before addressing his guest as if nothing had happened. "Come on Oakley, I'm counting on you, the whole village is counting on you!".

"I-I understand, Mr. Woodberry. But the seed you are looking for, I just don't think it exists".

"It's been months without a good harvest, you know as well as I do that not even plant dust is growing anymore in that soil. I need you to find the Mother's Seed".

"I'm telling you; It's a myth, a fairy tale, it doesn't exist!".

"IT HAS TO!...It's this town's only hope. Oakley, the soil isn't fertile anymore, but with the Mother's Seed, we can grow anywhere at any season". Mr. Woodberry said with a bit of hope in his voice. Jaune stood there listening carefully, but he also noticed something, what seemed to be the shadow of a little kid hiding behind's Woodberry's desk.

"If the plantation goes bankrupt the entire village will suffer and I can't let that happen…Please, I'm begging you, just keep loo…".

The door was slammed open as a woman entered, Jaune immediately recognized her as the woman in the picture.

"Otis!".

"Damnit, Petunia! What do you want?!".

"The baby!".

The two men stood up immediately and ran out of the office with the woman.

A flash of light brough the place back to its ruined state, Jaune stood there trying to get a grasp of what just happened. He soon noticed a vine withering near his arm. The girl was nowhere to be found.

* * *

Don woke up once more. He was sitting on a wooden chair. At this point he didn't even bothered to check where he was, it didn't concern him anymore. His spirt was shattering, his will was broken. The unbearable guilt, it was torture, it was more painful than even the flames that burned him earlier. The words of the ghosts of his past stabbed him over and over again…and probably the worst part…was that they we right.

The door in front of him opened and the first thing Don saw was a platter of food, the smell was mesmerizing so he lifted his head…but the person holding it…was the one he feared the most to see.

"Oh, you woke up, uncle Don! Good, just in time for supper".

Don began to whimper at the sight of a young girl of around 14 years old, with dark brown hair and a face covered in freckles. "Amatista…".

"I made your favorite! My famous rabbit casserole!".

Don began to cry as the girl hummed a tune with a big smile in her face, smelling the casserole she proudly made.

"Oh, what it is? If it's because it doesn't have pepper, it's kind of your fault for not getting groceries".

Don sat there crying, remorse consumed him. Amatista walked towards him. "You really think those tears mean anything?".

He was shocked, he had his head down but she wasn't going to let him hide his shame. "Look at me, you coward". She grabbed his face and lifted it, "When will you learn to stop running away from your shame?". She shook his head violently before letting him go and walking away, sitting on a bed.

"I-I'm sorry".

"Well, here is the thing, haha…you are not. You knew exactly what you were doing. Leaving the way you did, leaving me behind, abandoning me like I was nothing. What was that you said? That I mean the world to you?".

"You do! I love you as if you were my own daughter!".

"STOP IT WITH YOUR LIES!". She threw the platter to a wall and the room shattered like glass, leaving the two standing in the dark void.

"You made a promise to my father, didn't you? That you would protect me, that you would always be there for me, well guess what?! The moment I needed you the most you ran away like the rat you are! Blaming me for all your frustrations. You lied to your own brother, you lied to my mother, you lied to me AND FOR WHAT?! To go live in a fantasy world? To go around playing hero?! How many people have you lied to all this time? Tens? Dozens? Hundreds?! Have you ever said any truths?"

Don grabbed his head is agony and despair as Amatista continued.

"Your life is nothing but lie, after lie, after more selfish lies. Ha! I wonder…What would Jaune think, when he knows the truth?".

Don's eye got wide, his breath got heavier and the tears came back.

"Oh the great hero, Dominque Cervantes!...Except, you are not a hero…you are not a knight…You aren't even a huntsman. All you are is a liar, a charlatan, a delusional old man following a stupid dream not giving a damn about who he hurts in the process. What will Jaune think when he learns that the only reason you wanted to travel with him was because you were jealous that Maria had an apprentice and you didn't!?".

"That's not true! I saw a flame in him!".

"Flame!? You saw yourself in him! You saw another pathetic kid with a dream and decided to ruin his life like you ruined yours!".

"That kid has potential for greatness! Way more than anyone I've ever met!".

"Thank the Gods! Otherwise you would have gotten him killed on day 1! You sold yourself as this great and wise warrior, but he probably has done greater things than you! You are nothing but dead weight!".

"Please stop".

"You wasted your life!".

"No".

"You abandoned me!".

"Stop!".

"You'll get him kill!".

"STOP!".

"AND ALL. TO LIVE. A STUPID. LIE!".

"AHHHHHHHHHH!".

* * *

Jaune searched the house as fast as he could, looking for both the girl and his lost mentor. The wooden floor kept cracking with every step. Sunset was almost there and the vines were becoming a little bit more active.

He ran back down to the first floor, searching everywhere he could. The building was severely damaged, puddles of water with vegetation blocked some of the areas and even massive holes on the floor were obstacles to his path. After a few minutes of exploring the mansion, finally, Jaune saw signs of life, the little girl was peaking from a doorway, calling for him with her hand.

When Jaune made it to the room, he found a studio with more books and a fireplace. He didn't see the little girl though, but what he saw was a vine. Unlike the other ones that either dangled from the ceiling or crawled on the floor and walls, this vine was rising from a desk, as if it was a tiny tree sprout. The vine twitched with a motion similar to the one the little girl was doing before; it was as if calling to him. The vines had showed him visions earlier…these things were dangerous, but if he wanted to stop them, he had to do a leap of faith. Taking a deep breath, Jaune offered his arm to the vine which lashes on to him and once again, the room around him changed in the blink of an eye.

Mr. Woodberry sat on his couch, smoking a cigar as he watched the flamed in the fire place. He had bags on his eyes and his clothes were messy, a far cry from the well-dressed man Jaune saw before.

"Mr. Woodberry" a maid said, trying to get his attention, but he didn't answer. "You have a visitor".

"I don't want visitors" he answered with an uncaring tone.

Oakley entered the studio, holding a box in his hands.

"Eh…it's you". He answered when he saw his supposed friend.

"Mr. Woodberry…I have great news".

"Oh, really? Is it bullet to end it all? I could really use one of those right now".

Oakley got more determine as he got closer to his friend. "I found it. I found the Mother's Seed. We can save the plantation now!".

Woodberry saw him without a care in the world, "Yay. Save the plantation, tell me, if I chocked on that seed you think it would be painful?".

"Otis, that's not funny".

"It wasn't a joke".

"It's been a year already. You can't live like this, look at you!".

Woodberry grabbed him by the neck collar, making him drop the box. "The day you lose your son you can tell me how I should feel". He looked at him for a few seconds before letting him go.

"I'm sorry about Oliver…but its time to move on, you and Petunia, you can't keep hurting yourself, think of your dau….".

"Get the hell out of my house". Woodberry had daggers on his eyes and Oakley didn't say anything else, he just saw as his friend sat back down and opened another bottle of whiskey, without a care in the world. He took his hat and left.

Jaune saw with sadness as Woodberry fell in a dark place he once knew himself, but maybe this man was far too deeper into it than he ever was. His attention was quickly caught by movement from behind the couch, a tiny hand grabbed the wooden box before a flash brought him back to reality.

"Wait…if the baby died…", Jaune pulled out the photo again but he noticed something curious, the picture only depicted 3 people, the father, the mother and the son…but not the daughter…until he moved his thumb. From behind her mother's leg, a little face could be seen hiding from the world, just taking a small peak, there she was, the little girl.

Jaune pondered for a bit, trying to understand. The Mother's Seed had something to do with the vines, but where was it? Where was the box?.

He kept searching, following the vines to their point of origin, he noticed that they all came from the backside of the mansion, but they had grown so thick, it was almost impossible to access the area.

Night was approaching and the vines were getting more and more active, some even began try to reach for him, just to met his blade. The place was becoming more dangerous by the second and Jaune still had no idea where Don even was.

He ran upstairs, trying to find a way to get to the backyard, but even the windows on the second floor were blocked by the vines. He was getting a bit desperate until finally, he saw a deemed light coming from under a door.

The young huntsman entered the room, finding it full of vegetation. It was a bedroom with pink walls, a few dolls and stuffed animals. He entered it slowly, to his fortune, the light he saw came from a window that wasn't blocked by the vines, from it he had perfect view of the backyard, the vegetation was dense but he was able to see, a massive bulb.

"What is that thing?". When trying to take a closer look, Jaune rested his hands on a drawer but one thing caught his attention, a little golden heart shaped pendant. He opened it and saw the inside, as he did, a vine rose from the window, calling for him once more. He offered his arm and again, the room changed before his eyes.

"Petunia! Where is my box!".

"The hell do I know!? What box?!".

"Don't play with me, woman!".

"Sir, Ma'am, please, not in front of the little lady's room".

"Who!?" They both answered at the same time.

The maid was horrified, "You…Your daughter…".

"…Ah, yeah…". Woodberry answered as if he just remembered a pair of socks, he forgot he had.

"Wasn't she in school?". Petunia asked without a shred of irony.

"Ma'am. Is the middle of the night!".

"Well she should be in school!".

The maid lashed in frustration, it was clear she had been enduring this couple for far too long, but this was the drop that spilled the glass. "It's the night! School is over! How dare you brush off your daughter like that?! Do you even know her name!?".

"I don't care, just where is my box!?".

"You are going to pay for speaking to me like that! Take your stuff and leave! NOW!".

The maid stomped her feet and scoffed at them before leaving in anger. Otis and Petunia turned the other way and just kept going with their fight.

Jaune stood in the middle of the room, horrified at how heated things got that fast. He soon heard a cry coming from a corner…there she was, the little girl. She was holding the box tightly, she put it in a small backpack and opened the window, climbing down an ivy fence until she reached the backyard. The entire room changed was more, Jaune was now standing in the middle of the garden, hedges circumvented two fountains and, in the middle, a long stone walkway went form the house to a grassy area.

The girl ran across the walkway as fast as she could until she finally reached the end. She quickly knelt on the ground and pulled a little hand shovel from her backpack, quickly digging a small hole. She tossed the shovel and took out the box, opening it, she found herself with a black seed with white, red and yellow stripes covering it. Wasting no time, the girl put the seed in the hole and covered it quickly and after pouring water on it…she knelt there and waited, breathing heavily. Nothing happened, which was understandable but the little girl insisted, she kept pouring water over and over and over again and her desperation kept growing. She finally ran out of water, tossing the watering can before embracing herself, she reached her breaking point, and cried her eyes out, her tears falling on the moved soil.

Jaune stood there unsure of what to do, he couldn't help her, all he could do was stand there and watch as the poor girl reached for a tiny bit of hope to have the love of her parents. He tried to approach her, he wanted to help her…and then the ground began to move.

The tears of sorrow and desperation of a young soul…such delicious negative emotions. A black sprout emerged form the soil and caught the girl's attention. At first, she found it cute, it was tiny and moved playfully. She tried to touch it…and everything went wrong. The sprout reached for her finger and stung it with a sharp stinger, drawing a drop of blood.

"Ah!". The girl yelled in fear, she tried to run away back to the safety of her house, but the plant grew larger in a matter of seconds, a quick vine launched at the little girl, stabbing her in the back and splitting her body from her aura.

"NO!" Jaune yelled as he rushed to the girl's aid, but the vision had ended and he was back at the bedroom. At the doorway though…the little girl stood, embracing herself.

Jaune turned at her, seeing her with eyes of sadness. "You…no, it's ok". Jaune walked towards the girl who didn't run away this time, she just stood there whimpering and ashamed, consumed by guilt. "It wasn't your fault. You just wanted to help. You heard the seed could help your parents and the village; you couldn't have known".

He tried to caress her hair to calm her down, but his hand went through her, Jaune realized what happened, the being in front of him was the girl's aura, it was her soul. The girl began to cry, "I'm so sorry".

The sun had set, night had fallen, a night of new moon called upon the rise of the dormant creature. The girl gasped as she realized what was about to happen. The vines once slow began to move aggressively with life and rage. The mansion began to shake as the vines grew larger and larger.

"What's going on?!".

The girl looked at him, her eye pleaded for help, "It's awake", she said before a vine pulled her out of the room at high speed.

"NO!". Jaune shouted, he ran to the hallway to try to help her but she was already gone. The hallway was infested with active vines that launched at the nearest victim they could find. Jaune rushed back at the bedroom and locked the door behind him but it was useless, the vines outside where too strong and the vines inside where just as vicious. With no choice, Jaune drew his shield and jumped off the window, nearly getting caught by the vines after him. He rolled as he landed to mitigate the fall and soon found himself in the backyard. The vines were bigger and stronger in this place, but Jaune was in the source and this was the only option he had left. If he wanted to save the village, Don and the little girl, he had to make a stand.

A massive vine whipped at him but he managed to avoid it, the vine instead hit a wall with force and opened a hole on it.

Jaune ran as fast as he could, blocking the vines with his shield or cutting them with his sword, but the sheer number of them was overwhelming, he couldn't even stand in something that weren't plants. Soon a vine managed to grab his leg and raise him in the air, slamming him against the floor a couple times before he managed to cut it and free himself.

In pain, he didn't have time to stand up before multiple vines began to whip him from all directions, all he could do was endure the hits, try to block them and keep moving. A vine whipped him from the right, launching him over the hedges and in the fountain's water, Jaune struggled to recover when another vine wrapped itself around him and lift him in the air again, throwing him. He flew in the air until another vine grabbed him, he managed to free himself from it but fell from two stories high, he was quick enough to stab his sword on a vine and slow down his fall while splitting it in half. Jaune now stood right at the start of the walkway and right in front of him rose the creature.

The Grimm was a massive flower, its bulb rose and opened into yellow and red petals with white barks that looked like fangs, from the middle, multiple tongue like tentacles moved frenetically, and a single small vine rose in front of it, having on its end the soul of the little girl, dangling her as it let out an imponent roar.

" _GRRAAAAAAARAHHHHH!"._

The roar forced Jaune to cover his ears, it was that powerful. The vines resumed their assault, whipping him and pushing him before going for a stab, the Grimm tried to impale him from above, he was quick enough to dodge the vines which crushed the floor beneath them.

The relentless assault continued, Jaune ran as fast as he could towards the flower Grimm, but the vines kept coming from all directions, he blocked a strike from the left and quickly cut a vine from the right, trying to keep moving, but the environment belonged to the Grimm, the floor began to move and wave and Jaune realized he was running on top of a massive vine, he kept going as much as he could but the terrain was too erratic and the assault from other vines was too overwhelming. He ended up losing balance and falling off the vine face first to the ground, no time to waste, he rolled to the side to avoid the vines as they tried to smash him like a bug.

He stood up and immediately got caught, a vine grabbed him by the leg and swung him around. Jaune swung his sword trying to get free, the situation was sending him into a panic…but he couldn't lose himself, he realized that to beat this creature, he needed to keep a cold mind even in the most heated of situation and think fast. He waited for the right moment, the vine swung at the right angle and he sliced it, launching himself in the air.

From the sky, Jaune looked at the swarming vines, the forest inferno below him. It was a mouth of horrors…and he was willing to dive into it, to protect those that needed him. In midair, he managed to activate his spear and aimed at a vine. He used the bladed cross guard and stabbed the vine, using it as support to swing forward towards the flower. The little girl saw in awe as the huntsman flew through the air with the intent of stabbing and ending this creature of nightmares…but the beast wouldn't go down that easily.

Jaune managed to reach the flower, stabbing it with speed and strength, he had turned himself into an arrow…and still it wasn't enough. The spear bounced off the Grimm and so did Jaune. The hide was just too strong, the spear didn't even scratch it. Jaune fell to the ground again, his spear flying far from his reach. Another vine tried to slam him but he avoided it, running towards his weapon to try again and keep on fighting, something that the Grimm wasn't going to allow. Right before he could grab his weapon, a vine lashed around his neck, strangling him and soon other vines began to grab his arms, legs, and torso. Jaune was moved to face the Grimm and the captive little girl as if the creature wanted her to see the fall of the hero that tried to save her.

Jaune struggled to get free until the vines flashed with light…and everything went dark…the void…the darkness had returned.

He laid paralyzed and in pain, struggling to even breath. He couldn't see the vines anymore, all he saw was the little girl floating in the void, holding her heart and crying in despair as every last bit of hope left her heart.

Jaune felt an embrace from his back that at first, he thought were the vines but soon realized they were arms, a human one, a Grimm one, but red hair fell in his shoulder and a sweet voice whispered in his ear.

"See, my love? What did we tell you? How did you want to save her if you can't even save yourself?", The monstrosity wearing Pyrrha's face kept taunting him.

"Let me go!".

"Shhhh. Just relax. Let yourself go. Just…give up. Let us take care of everything…Let us end it for you…Let us…consume….".

Jaune began to stop struggling and just calmed down. He stopped fighting to get free.

"Good, you finally understood how worthless you really are. You can't save anyone. Even if you save a life, what exactly does that accomplish? They will just live another day haunted by regret…hehe, if you think about it, we are doing them a favor. We are giving them that sweet release from this torment of a life…all we want in return…is that pain…that guilt…that delicious regret. Give it to us…and we will set you free…".

"….You don't have to live with regret".

"What?".

"We all make mistakes. We all fail at some point. We all make our own demons but we don't have to live with them".

"Hahahaha. You can't escape from your past, sweetheart. Sooner or later, your ghosts will comeback".

"I never said I wanted to run from them. I rather greet them, I rather face them, I rather fight them…and make peace with them. Living without moving on…that's not a life at all".

"If only it were that simple, right? But what about her? Don't you think she wants that sweet release? Oh but she committed the greatest sin..she brought us here, her punishment? To be a ghost haunted by ghosts. You think she can face her past? You think she can be at peace?".

"Hehehe".

"Why are you laughing?!" The abomination tightened her grip on his neck in frustration.

"Yes, she can be at peace…she just needs someone to support her…someone to care for her…I never said you had to fight your ghosts alone…".

"No one will stand with her! She belongs to u…". Jaune grabbed the abomination's face with his hand.

"I will". He closed his fist and smashed the creature into million pieces, shattering the illusion.

Jaune fell to the ground on one knee as all the vines withered and let him free. The little girl was in awe and shocked while the hero stood much to the creature's rage.

He ran charging towards the creature. The Grimm had enough of this, it rose up its vines and created thorns on all of them before rushing for the assault.

Jaune ran avoiding the vines, jumping, leaping, ducking, he just kept moving. He finally reached his spear and immediately retuned it to his shield form, he needed all the defense he could have gotten as he approached the beast.

Thorn filled vines destroyed the walkway in front and behind him trying to stop his charge, but he didn't stop, he couldn't stop and he couldn't be stopped, there were people that needed him.

He slashed vines coming from the side as many as he could before losing his sword. He blocked with his shield as many stabs and whips as he could until he lost his shield, but by then he managed to reach his target. He ran on top of a vine to reach altitude and leaped in the air, grabbing the small vine connected to the little girl.

The tiny vine was weak enough for him to pull it to the ground with his weight, he stepped on it hard to avoid it from leaving. The girl couldn't understand, she was in shock she was in panic…and a warm embrace covered her with care and love.

Jaune held the girl tightly, "I'm so sorry. What happened to you..it wasn't fair". The vines whipped Jaune's back but he didn't stop. "You parents…they forgot about you, they forgot about the most important person in their lives and you just wanted to help!". The thorns of the whips began to bypass his aura and draw blood. "I lost someone important to me. I took her for granted until she was gone…BUT SHE LIVES ON THROUGH ME!", more whips hit him, "AH!". The little girl wanted it to stop, she didn't want another person to die because of her, but Jaune didn't let go…and soon, his aura began to glow. The whips didn't do as much damage anymore and Jaune began to speak more calmly. "She lives on because I keep her memory alive…and I can do the same for you, Mary". The girl's eyes got wide, it had been so long since she heard her own name, the name Jaune read on the golden pendant. "I promise you, that as long as I live, I will keep your memory alive..No one will forget your name again". Mary's face was covered in tears and she hugged Jaune tightly, her heart just needed someone to tell her..that they cared.

Jaune used his semblance on Mary, boosting a being made of raw aura. The vine going from her back began to glow intensely. The beast was done with games, aiming all its vines at the insolent mortal, it launched an assault aimed at impaling him, but when the vines were about to reach him, they suddenly stopped as if held by something or someone.

" _GRAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH"._

The monster tried to move other vines but they all faced the same fate, they began to get paralyzed on the spot, the creature had lost control over its own vines. This was no longer its land, the Grimm now stood in Mary's garden, the princess of the country of the lost. The vines rose up and sharpened their thorns as the Grimm shook frenetically in rage.

" _GRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!"._

The Grimm let out a roar that was quickly silenced by a swarm of its own vines impaling it and ending its reign of terror.

As the Grimm banished, all the vines turned into dust, even the ones as far as the village just banished and as soon as they did, all the villagers began to recover their minds, seeing the real world for the first time in weeks.

Jaune released Mary and took a look at her, caressing her face as she smiled and snuggled his hand.

"Thank you". She said.

"I'll keep my promise".

"I know you will. You are a hero", She smiled with tears of joy in her eyes before banishing herself. Her soul finally freed.

* * *

It took Jaune a week of hard work but after days of dedicated care to the villagers, finally some had recovered their strength enough to lend him a hand. He became the villager's unofficial doctor, something Jaune had a bit of experience with.

The villagers were immensely grateful, their houses were heavily damaged, but they were alive thanks to the efforts of this young man.

Two weeks after the battle at Woodberry Mansion, most of the villagers had made a full recovery and reparations began to take place.

As he sat in the local school, Jaune chatted with the old man he helped the day he arrived at this cursed village.

"You sure you don't want help?".

"Haha! More? No, young man, if it wasn't for you, I wouldn't be here today, this is the least I can do", The old man turned out to be a teacher, he was looking for a book he mentioned to Jaune the night prior.

Jaune just laughed off the man's comment, he was just glad the village was safe.

"Good morning, you called for us?" A man and woman entered the school, they turned out to be Oakley and the Woodberry's maid, Jaune found them among the survivors.

"Oh, good morning, yeah, I wanted to discuss something with you two".

"Here is it", The old man put on a book on a table and opened on a specific page. The book was a Grimm encyclopedia and the page it had opened had artwork depicting a massive and familiar plant Grimm. "Was this the thing you saw?".

"Yeah, that's exactly it".

The old man read the description, "I see. It says here this thing is called a 'Sangrake'. They are extremely rare, less than 10 have been seen in recorded history. They have some sort of influence over plants, increasing their growth but also controlling them".

"Does it say anything about aura?". Jaune asked.

"Plenty. The Sangrake feeds of aura charged with negativity, it causes hallucinations to get the aura to its desired state, not only does it absorb it from the victim it torments, it also searches for particularly pained aura filled with negative emotions, it keeps it alive longer to use as a fertilizer".

Jaune became upset at the implication, "That's all it says?".

"Yeah, like I said, these things are extremely rare".

Jaune grabbed a pen, he wasn't going to leave things like this and proceeded to write everything he learned about how to kill the Sangrake, including the minor control the host has on the vines specially during the day and the possibility of freeing yourself from the illusion by coming to terms with your past.

Oakley and the maid grew curious. "But the Grimm is dead, right? Why does it matter now?".

"Because that fertilizer was Mary Woodberry". Jaune answered with sadness and a bit of anger.

" _GASP!_ No! NOT the young lady!". The maid said horrified.

Jaune turned at the two of them, "That's why I brought you here. I didn't save this village, Mary did. She killed the Sangrake… but she also showed me where it came from, Mr. Oakley".

Oakley was shocked and began to sweat nervously, "…How?".

"It's complicated. But she showed me what happened at the Mansion and what happened to her family".

Oakley was overwhelmed, he couldn't even remain standing, he had to sit, "The Mother's Seed…It's my fault…I…I killed all those people".

"It was an accident, no one could have known what would happen…but if someone is responsible are the Woodberry".

The maid jumped in, "Please don't tarnish their names. The Woodberry built this village, they were good people, they just….it was difficult after they lost their child…it changed them…they were already under so much pressure, but after that day…it was as if their hearts withered".

"I don't want to tarnish their name, no matter what they did, Mary still loved them. But there is something I want you to do".

"I mean, we do owe you, so sure, ask for anything", the old man said, encouraging everyone to cooperate.

Jaune pulled from his pocket Mary's golden pendant. "Mr. Oakley, I understand you are a business man. You have a debt to this village. I want you to use some of your resources to repair Woodberry Mansion, open it to the public or make it a government building, I don't care. But I want you to put a monument in the garden with this pendant on it. As long as the village stands, I want everyone to keep the memory of Mary Woodberry alive. You are all here today because of her, never forget her name".

Oakley immediately accepted and Jaune placed the pendant on his hand.

The next day, the villagers began repairs at Woodberry Mansion. Jaune and Don stood in front of the building, each with completely opposite feelings about it. The two turned and walked away to resume their journey, but there was something Jaune had spent weeks without seeing. Don's smile was long gone…the things that he saw….the ghosts haunting him, they made his heart heavy and his mind a mess.

"Don? Are you ok?...Don?".

"Wha….Oh….yeah…I'm fine…".

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for reading, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. As always any criticsm both possitive and negative would be really appreaciated.
> 
> Bit of Lore: The Sangrake is based of a mix of two plant cryptids, the Mandrake and the Nicaraguan Vampire Vine. The name comes from the words "Sangre" (spanish for blood) and "Mandrake".


	12. Spells, Witchcraft and Potions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After his experience with the Sangrake, Don has fallen in a dark place. The ghosts of his past draw near him and his young apprentice struggles to bring him back to the light.

**Chapter XII**

**Spells, Witchcraft, and Potions**

_Smoke, ash, the smoldering smell of sorrowful regret. There is a point in everyone's lives in which fantasy is extinguished long enough for you to be hit with the grim reality of the world. When that moment comes…what will you do? You could stand up and power through it…noble…not easy though, sometimes life has a sad way of stepping on your dreams, push them ever farther and farther away from your grasp while you watch longing to one day reach them…always fearing that day may never come. The other option?...hide, retrieve into your fantasy world, run away from your demons….leave everything behind…it's foolish though._

_As the flames consumed the windmill, a young man laid on his knees, with eyes dry from tears, he saw how the fires consumed everything he once knew and everyone he once loved. His home, his family, his hopes, and his dreams all gone in a single night. He stayed there, watching it all burn with not a single thought in his mind, not a single word from his mouth. Just the cracking sounds of the burning wood planks…and the loud cries of the baby in his arms._

_It's foolish to run from your demons, because like Miguel told his little brother, "You can't escape from who you are, Dominique. Sooner or later, your ghosts will catch up…and drag you to hell with the rest of us"._

* * *

"Don….Don…", A slight shake of his shoulder from his young apprentice and a rough movement of the carriage they were traveling in was everything needed to snap Don out of yet another trance. It's been a week since their encounter with the Sangrake, but the bright smile Jaune admired so much had not returned. In its place, a blank expression remained and a distant gaze that was as lost as his long-gone laughter.

"Wha-Oh. Sorry, kid".

"It's happening more often. Are you sure you are ok?". The young huntsman asked with concern. He had no idea what had his mentor in this state. A lingering effect of the Grimm they fought? An illness? Something he did or didn't do? All working theories in Jaune's head. What was clear though was what he could see with his own two eyes, his master wasn't well and he needed to help him.

"I-Yeah" Don rubbed his eyes and put his hand on his student's shoulder, giving him a faint smile "I just had a rough night, kid, that's all".

"Again?".

"Yes. Again", he answered rather harshly trying to dismiss his student's concerns. He stretched a bit and then looked around, "How much longer?", he asked, trying to change the subject.

Jaune saw him with frustrated and sad eyes before reluctantly answering his question, "If there are no other delays, we should get to a village in a couple of hours. From there, it's...maybe, a day to Gaviota, I think".

Jaune and Don had been traveling for months by now. What started like an exciting journey and a dream come true for the young huntsman, soon became a set of misfortuned events, obstacles, hardships, but also rather unexpectedly, it was probably the sort of journey Jaune needed. In his travels, he got to meet incredible people, grew stronger not only physically but also as a person. The memories of this travel were going to be treasured in his heart for as long as he lived…but every journey must come to an end and for the young huntsman…his path with his mentor was coming to a close. Gaviota was their end goal, where he had agreed to meet with his friend Ruby to continue their duty.

Don on the other hand had grown bitter. The man that once would have given anything to stay in this adventure forever, now just wanted it all to end. "One more day, huh?".

* * *

_Steel clashed in an empty field right outside the small village of Castañuela. It was a small and humble town without much to offer to the main kingdom, except for one thing, warriors and dream seekers._

_Castañuela had a reputation for training youngsters in the art of combat, enthusiastic young men and women ready to take the not long-established Huntsmen license exams. In a sense, these villages hosted one of the first combat schools that would serve as a training ground for those hoping to attend one of the 4 Huntsmen Academies founded soon after the end of the Great War._

_Huntsmen, the title sounded heroic and exciting. Just hearing it made a young lad's mind go wild with hopes and dreams of adventure and heroism. Fighting evil beasts, saving damsels in distress, making a legend of your name, becoming the mightiest of all._

_"IM HERE! IM…"._

_"Late. Again. Just take a seat, Cervantes, you are hopeless". The instructor said, a big man in his mid-20s, black hair and tanned skin but with deep blue eyes, clad in armor and with a tower shield on his back as shiny as a mirror. This was Roberto Celestino, a recently licensed huntsman who had taken what seemed to many as an easy mission, train the aspiring huntsmen and huntresses in his home village for the upcoming huntsmen license exam and Academy entry test._

_"Sorry, Sorry, but on the way here, I had to save an innocent farmer from a fierce Sabyr and…"._

_"Sabyrs are native to Solitas. You can't bring them this far south because Grimm can't be kept in captivity. You'll know that if you were ever in time for class or training. And finally, if YOU had fought a Sabyr you'll be walking without a head. Now, sit down". Roberto responded with an aggressive tone, he was known for his lack of patience and Don had an innate talent to piss him off._

_The young lad sat on a log next to his fellow students, arms crossed and mumbling like a kid who just got told he couldn't have dessert._

_"I could totally beat a Sabyr". He whispered to the classmate next to him, just to get an elbow to the side to shut him up._

_A 16 years old boy with a reputation of being a brave and heroic warrior…in the stories he kept repeating to his friends and the occasional grandma just wanting directions. No, Don wasn't a brave hero, he was a kid with a love for fantasy books and an ego the size of a castle. A boy without much training, barely any experience but quite some talent and his heart set on one thing, making his dream come true._

_Don was a trouble maker, there wasn't a day in which his crazy ideas didn't cause troubles to his town. He used to spend days just being lazy around town, telling his crazy stories. The days he wasn't being an annoyance to his neighbors were the days he spent reading his fantasy books at the local book store. Tales of brave heroes, knights from the Great War, and even before it. Don's head was filled with dreams of adventure, dreams of finally becoming someone worthy of praise. He wanted to be a warrior, a strong knight that wandered the land saving people and being loved by everyone just like the heroes from his books. He already sold himself as a great hero, not that many believed him of course, but if you believe in yourself you will definitely make that dream come true, right? Well, in his head that's how it worked. And to him, there were no braver heroes than Huntsmen._

_Roberto took a deep breath and continued with his announcement. "Ok, dirtbags. Some of you may have already heard, but the Academies are about to open up their entry exams and host the license test. I have in my hand the list of participants I have selected to go this year. If you are good enough, you'll take the test to get into an Academy. If you are even better, you can directly take the license exam. And if your name isn't on the list, well tough luck, you'll have to wait until next year, was I clea…Gods Damnit, what do you want?"._

_Don was raising his hand with an exciting smile and hooping on his seat to get his instructor's attention, "Oh! In which list am I?"._

_"You?"._

_"Yeah! I mean, of course, I'm getting in the Academies, but If I can skip all the class thingy, Why not? Hehe, so, when do I get my license?". Don said with a big arrogant smile on his face._

_"You? Oh, right, how could I forget? You are getting your license between the day the sun explodes and never". Roberto said followed by chuckles from the rest of the students._

_Don looked at him in confusion, "Wait! I'm not on the list?!"._

_"Of course, you are not on the list! To be on the list, you kind of have to come to class and train". The students just kept chuckling as Roberto just rolled his eyes. Don a huntsman? Not a chance in Roberto's mind._

_Don stood up, he started to breathe heavily and exasperated. "What are you talking about?! I come every day! I'm stronger than anyone here, everyone knows that"._

_Roberto walked up to him, a vein popping from his forehead "You come ALMOST every day, you always come late, you always have an excuse to not train and then bring a new story about how, oh so great, you are"._

_"Well, I'm mean, I am great. I don't really need training. I'm already badass enough to become a huntsman. Easy job for someone like me". Don responded, kissing his arms as if he had big muscles, which of course he didn't._

_Roberto had enough, arrogance was one thing, but disrespecting huntsmen work was another. He stood right in front of him and looked him dead in the eyes, the other students rapidly stopped chuckling, shutting each other up as soon as they felt the anger pouring from Roberto's face. "You think you can become a huntsman? You? To become a huntsman you need to sweat and bleed every single day honing your skills because if you don't, people die. Don't come at me with bull crap of how great you are. That dream of yours? It's not gonna happen, buddy, you don't have what it takes. Lazy liars like you are not Huntsmen material. Get over yourself". With those words he turned around and walked away, leaving Don speechless and his pride shattered. There were very few things that could enrage Don, seeing someone being treated unfairly, someone hurting his family, and finally, someone stepping over his dream._

_"You are wrong". Don said under his breath._

_"Have something to say?"._

_Don clenched his fists "You are wrong. I will be a Huntsman. I will be a brave hero" He lifted his face with raging eyes, "I don't need your stupid school! I'm already the strongest fighter in this gods forsaken village! I will take that test and I will become the greatest huntsman in Remnant! Just watch me!"._

_"You can barely tie your shoes! Do you think you can kill a Grimm?! The first Beowolf that comes at you will bite your face off!"._

_"I'm stronger than you think! Don't underestimate me! I know I can beat everyone in here! Especially you!"._

_"DEAL!"._

_"W-What?!". Don had been yelling out of inertia, words just came out of his mouth without him thinking about them, and his arrogance had finally gotten him in a situation he couldn't run away from, his pride wouldn't allow it._

_"You and me. If the 'All-mighty warrior' can beat me, I'll let you take the entrance exam. If you don't, you'll leave. What do you say? Or are you just big talk?"._

_Don gave it a thought, there was a side of him that was telling him to decline and be smart…but he rarely listened to that voice, instead, his damaged pride made him run his mouth. "Deal", he said, before grabbing his sword and shield and stepping into the little makeshift arena._

_Roberto had a confident smile as he took his shield and walked towards the arena._

_The knight covered in armor stood firmly while the young apprentice took his stance and the audience of other students sat in anticipation, all taking bets on how long will Don last against a Pro huntsman._

_Don struggled to keep his breathing under control, he was exalted, nervous, his hands were shaking and sweat covered his face. Don knew he was a talented fighter, he knew all he needed was to believe in himself and he would be able to accomplish anything, even beating a pro huntsman in single combat. Or at least that's what he kept telling himself. His opponent was more experienced than him. But there was no turning back now. Winning this match was Don's only chance to take the entrance exam at a real Huntsman Academy. Roberto was a roadblock to achieving his dream, and he was determined to go through him if he had to._

_"Arg!"._

_"Come on, Cervantes! Don't tell me you are just words!". Said the big man after he had easily sent the young boy to the ground._

_Don stood up and tried again, charging with all his might. As he got close though, Roberto simply stepped to the side and avoided his strike. He kept doing the same thing over and over again. Roberto was wearing heavy armor and caring an even heavier shield, but Don's strikes were so sloppy, he didn't have any difficulty just avoiding the strikes and slamming Don with his massive tower shield._

_A swing and a miss were followed by a shield bash to the face. Don managed to keep standing and charged but Roberto simply evaded and slammed over and over and over again._

_Shield to the face, shield to the stomach, shield to the toes, shield to the chin. Don was getting slammed and thrown to the ground repeatably, but he was a stubborn man._

_"I'll count to three! If your ass is not off the ground, I'll kick it out of my training camp!..1, 2.."._

_"I'm up! I'm up!" said the beaten-up boy before spitting blood from his mouth._

_"Try again, then! Now!" Roberto ordered, slamming his shield on the ground challenging Don._

_Don held his sword and shield tightly, clenching his teeth in prideful anger and determination. He rushed for a new assault, giving his all just to break Roberto's impressive defense._

_As the blade slashed the shield, Don recovered some of his confidence and pride, his strike was hard and had a lot of weight to it, he knew…he felt it on his chest just seconds later._

_Don stepped back a little, trying to quickly recover from the effect of Roberto's semblance, CounterPoint. Roberto was able to return any damage dealt to his aura right back at the target that caused it, in combination with his aura infused mirror shield, Reflejo Brillante, the knightly huntsman was an almost impenetrable fortress._

_The young dreamer continued his assault, not letting the pain in his body slow him down, but every slash from his sword met the reflective surface of the shield and ended up hurting his body instead._

_"It's that it?! You just have a big mouth, kid! You said you'll kick my ass, THEN PROVE IT! PUNK!"._

_Don was getting angrier with every word that came from Roberto's mouth. He had been talking all morning with the villagers and aspiring huntsmen of how he was talented enough to kill every Grimm and beat every Huntsman the Academies could throw at him. Earlier to the town kids, he brought up stories of that time he slew 50 beowolves on his own, which of course was actually just one he killed by accident. The boy had a dream but not much training, he boasted about his talent but his pride kept clouding his view of the world._

_"GIVE UP, YOU USELESS MOR…" Roberto was about to say, but to his surprise, the idiot in front of him caught him off guard. Don threw his shield at him which Roberto easily blocked, but it was just a decoy, Don had managed to distract him long enough to move behind the tower mirror shield and slash his opponent in the face._

_For a second there, Don's pride rose up once more. The undefeated pro huntsman had blood on his cheek courtesy of his blade. He stood there with a big smile…that promptly shattered when he felt blood running down from his own cheek._

_Roberto turned with a disappointed expression in his face. The cut in his cheek had healed yet the reflected injury in Don's remained open. "You ran out of aura, dumbass". He said, before bashing Don with all the strength of his tower shield, launching him to the ground and making him lose his sword._

_"Pathetic"._

_Don struggled to stand up, but he was too weak to do so, he could barely support himself with his elbow on the ground._

_"You are hopeless"._

_"I'm not done yet…I can still" Don tried to say, drops of blood in his mouth and his face covered in dirt._

_"Yes, you are. You see, kid. You are not made for this. That cut? It's as good as it gets for you and that's not enough to call yourself a huntsman", Roberto's anger had calmed, only disappointment and a cynical look remained in his face. "You can't escape from who you are, Cervantes. A lazy liar with delusions of grandeur. Not a shred of effort. Do you think that's how you will become a true huntsman? Do yourself a favor…give up"._

_Give up? That was a phrase that haunted Don deep down. It scared him, the idea of losing a dream and resigning to just be another nameless background character in his own story. That fear and terror often came with uncertainty…but when he heard it from others, when others would tell him that his dream was worthless or impossible, no matter how often he heard it from the people of his village, it always pained him and angered him, more than people realized it._

_Don stood up, he didn't even try to take his sword, he simply ran towards his opponent, ready to beat him with his bare hands if he had to, but an attack in anger was even more pathetic than what Roberto had expected, and he had expected very little of the boy._

_Don punched the mirror shield and immediately felt an impact in his stomach, taking the air out of his lungs._

_"We are done here"._

_"N-no- cough. We are NOT!"_

_"Yes, you are. Dominque". A voice came from behind Don, approaching the pained boy and his instructor. The man had light brown skin and a 5 o'clock shadow. The man was in his late 20's but looked a bit younger, yet he had an aura of maturity that inspired respect in all the villagers in Castañuela. He was wearing a simple white shirt with a brown leather vest and his iconic hat._

_The man stood next to Don looking directly at him. "Pick up your weapons, Donny."._

_"Miguel! I can still"._

_"Did I stutter?! Pick up your weapons, we are going home. Now!". Miguel Cervantes said. Don was very confrontational; he had a real issue with figures of authority…all except one. His older brother basically raised him, there was no one he respected more than him, and that look of disappointment in his eyes, it felt like needles stabbing him all around his body._

_Don couldn't reply, he just stood up in pain, picked up his weapons, and licked his wounds._

_"He can't keep coming if he continues being a little brat"._

_"I know. I know, Roberto. Just…let me talk to him"._

_Roberto and Miguel kept looking as Don was limping trying to get to his shield, all the while his classmates watched his disgrace._

_"If you do, then do him a favor. Talk some senses into his empty head. Make him quit now before he gets himself killed, or wor…"._

_"I said, I will talk to him". Miguel saw Roberto straight in the eyes. Roberto just like everyone else in the village had a deep respect for Miguel. Castañula didn't really have a Major or a Governor of any kind, but when it came to leadership, people felt Miguel was the person to come to. He was a former Kingdom guard, a smart man, and a well-mannered person who always lent a hand to anyone who needed him._

_Roberto put his shield on his back and approached Miguel once more, "You can't protect him forever, Miguel. But you can protect others. Listen, I've seen what you can do. Take the license exam. We can really use more good huntsmen"._

_"You already have all these kids. They all seem more than capable of protecting the world"._

_"…Not all of them"._

_Miguel took a deep breath as he looked Don dropping his shield and trying to pick it up again._

_"Sigh. I'll talk to him, Roberto. I promise"._

_"Suit yourself. But the kid is no huntsman, I'll tell you that. My advice? Make him work at that windmill of yours, might keep him out of trouble…or might poison us all, who knows?"._

_"Heh. I'll keep it in mind" Miguel said, chuckling a bit. He patted Don's shoulder twice and the two walked away._

_"What am I going to do with you, Donny?"._

* * *

The carriage finally stopped at a small village. Jaune was happy to finally be able to stretch his legs and take some fresh air.

"This is as far as I can take you, lad".

"Thank you so much, sir".

"Don't mention it. It's the least I could do after you saved our town. I would still be a plant zombie if it wasn't for you. That road over there will take you to Gaviota. You and your grandpa take care".

Jaune turned for a bit to see Don, still with that empty look in his face, kicking some rock in the ground.

"We'll do. Thanks", He said and right after, the merchant they had hitched a ride with drove his carriage away.

The village was very small, but getting some supplies to get to Gaviota wasn't a bad idea and from the market in front of them emanated a delicious smell of roasted pork.

"Come on. I don't know about you but I'm starving. What do you say we get some of those ribs over there? Oh! I see a noodle stand! Man, I don't remember the last time I had some of those. Maybe we could…".

"Kid…I've been meaning to tell you…" As soon as Don started talking, Jaune's enthusiasm banished. The boy was trying really hard to cheer his mentor up, but not even putting in a smile or the prospect of delicious food could bring the old man back to his cheerful self.

"Maybe…Maybe we should call it here".

Jaune was a bit shocked, "W-what do you mean?".

Don had his hands in his pockets, he couldn't even look at Jaune in the eyes while he spoke, "Maybe, it's best for you to go on. Gaviota isn't far away. You are a big boy; you don't need me to take you there. Just…go. See your friend again and tell Maria I said hi".

"What are you talking about? D-Don, you said we would travel to Gaviota. We are a day away, why do you want to quit now?".

"What difference does it make? Either here or in Gaviota, it's over. We will walk our separate ways. Listen, kid, I just don't feel like going on, that's it".

Jaune couldn't believe what he was hearing, he knew the end was near for their mentorship, but end things like this? "So that's it? You are giving up after all we have been through?".

"Jaune..".

"No! Don, I don't know what happened back there, but you haven't been the same ever since the Sangrake. What did it make you see? Don, talk to me, please".

"Everything must have an end, kid, that's just how life works, so why keep goi..".

"That's not an answer, Dominique". Jaune said, the boy was getting worked up but mostly he was fearful.

" _Dominique_ ". Hearing Jaune calling him that sent shivers to Don's spine. It sounded…far too familiar.

"Mig…".

"SOMEBODY HELP ME!", A woman cried from the village's market.

Jaune and Don were surprised by the commotion. The villagers were screaming and running while bandits in horseback rode away kidnapping people with their nets.

"HELP ME! PLEASE!". Yelled a woman covered in a net and being pulled by a bandit.

Don hesitated, he wanted to rush and save the woman, he felt the need to fight and protect her…but his legs didn't move. The weight in his shoulders didn't let him, the fear he was feeling didn't allow him to lift a finger. That woman needed a hero…but a hero was something he knew he wasn't. A hero would have rushed to save her…and a hero did.

While Don stood there lost in his conflicting emotions, Jaune was already slicing the net and freeing the woman.

"That's mine, punk!" The bandit said, firing his gun at Jaune and the woman. The bullets met his shield and with every shot, the woman yelled louder in terror.

When the gun finally ran out of bullets, Jaune picked his head out and got ready for his counter attack, but another bandit blew a whistle and caught everyone's attention.

"WE ARE MOVING! GO, GO!" She signaled and the bandit Jaune was fighting put his gun in his holster and rode into the woods with the rest of his gang.

The bandits had left but the panic in the village was still raging. The market was a mess and dust clouds still floated around the area, hiding injured people, scattered goods, and damaged buildings.

"Kid! Why did you run like that?!" Don said, worried.

"Why didn't you?!" Jaune answered in anger. Don could see the rage and disappointment in his eyes. Why didn't he? What kind of hero freezes like that?

The woman struggled to stand up and climbed on Jaune's clothe. "Please! Please! You have to save him!".

Jaune and Don were shocked. The young huntsman helped the woman stand and tried to calm her down. "It's ok, It's ok. Save who?".

"My son! They took him! Please you have to save my Cardo, Please!".

Jaune was still trying to process things when he noticed the woman's hands, they were more like mole claws than human hands.

"Kid…" Don tried to get his attention, but the fear and commotion of the town had finally caught the attention of the nearby Grimm who had begun their own hunt.

"As soon as the village is safe, we will, you have my word". Jaune reassured the woman before sending her running to seek refuge.

"Jaune…".

"We'll deal with the Grimm and save the kidnapped people…".

"Kid, I…".

"Then…You'll give me some answers…Come on". Jaune said, sword and shield ready, he ran towards the Grimm. Don once again hesitated, but reluctantly followed his apprentice. The fear, the terror, the regret, and the doubt, all weighing him and dragging him down.

* * *

_"We are home," Miguel said, arriving at the family windmill with his little brother. He was greeted by the smell of a beef stew, his and Don's favorite._

_Miguel had inherited the windmill from his parents after both perished in a Grimm attack. A far too common occurrence especially at the settlements outside the kingdoms, even in those close to the walls like Castañuela. It was a structure of wood and stone that served as both grain milling and a modest family house._

_"Oh, hey, honey. How was your..Donny! My goodness, what happened to you?!". A sweet woman with light red hair and a face full of freckles rushed to her little brother-in-law and started checking his wounds._

_"It's nothing, Margarita". Don said._

_"Your cheek is bleeding, how is that nothing? Hold still" She took a cloth napkin and began cleaning the blood from his cheek._

_"I said I'm fine! My aura will heal it!". Don said, of course, his aura hadn't come back yet. His temper tantrum was met with the usual slap to the back of the head courtesy of his older brother. "Ow!"._

_"Watch your tone, Dumbass, especially with her!"._

_Don stormed off in a fit of anger and childish frustration. He quickly ran upstairs to his room, not able to look Margarita in the eyes or even lift his face out of shame._

_"What happened?"._

_Miguel sat down on the couch and put his hat on a table, he felt tired, not physically but emotionally. It hadn't been easy to raise his little brother and moments like this just made him doubt if he could ever be a father himself._

_"He got under Roberto's skin. Started a fight with him after he told him he couldn't be a huntsman. Sigh." Miguel said while rubbing his eyes._

_"You need to talk to him"._

_"And what should I say? I…Sometimes I wish Grandpa was still here. He was better at this than I am. I mean…" He said, clinging on to the memory of Granpa Cervantes, the kind man who took care of him and his little brother when they were children._

_Margarita had a way of turning despair into calmness, not with magic or semblances but simply by being there when she was needed and sharing a kind and sweet smile. "Your brother needs us. He needs guidance, he needs support and we must try to help him"._

_"I just…"._

_"Hey" Margarita grabbed her husband's face gently and locked eyes with him. "The right words will come to you, I know that. But you can't just stay here and do nothing". She gave him a quick kiss before standing up. "Donny is a dreamer. The kind who spends day and night just imagining the life he wants to live"._

_"The world doesn't work like that though"._

_"Huh…" Margarita gave him an incredulous yet playful look. "You of all people saying that?"._

_"What is that supposed to mean?"._

_She launched herself on him and hugged him from behind. "Weren't you that kid who told me 'Oh! My lady! I'll get you a castle and guard you forever! For I will be your knight, my princess!'? I always thought that boy was a dork"._

_"Oh, come on. I was like 12 back then"._

_She kissed his cheek. "A cute dork though."_

_The two chuckled. Miguel and Margarita had been friends since they were little and growing up that love just grew until it bloomed into a romance that would last a lifetime. They had recently gotten married but to many, they were destined to be for years._

_"You are also a dreamer. You always have been. You dreamed of a life of adventure and becoming a hero to the people because you wanted to help others. You wanted to be a warrior and live in a castle with your beautiful princess"._

_"Hehe…Well, that last one did happen"._

_"Just that one? You are a veteran, aren't you? I love our little castle. And for your information, I've always been more of a queen than a princess!"._

_Miguel laughed and snuggled his face against his wife's._

_"Dreams do come true, Miguel"._

_Miguel's smile faded for a brief moment, "Even if reality doesn't turn out like fantasy". He was swimming in self-doubt but his thick head wasn't seeing the point until he saw his wife walk away with a smile, she was pointing at her nose as if telling him he got it._

_"Just talk to Donny whenever you are ready"._

_Night fell and Don sat staring at his window. Looking at the stars as if they would give him answers. "You'll never be a huntsman" he remembered Roberto's words. The lingering fear of a dead dream. He felt trapped in this small village. He wanted to see the world, he wanted his life to mean something, and being shown he wasn't good enough crushed him. Reality was a cage for him. His fantasy was liberating, there in his imagination, he felt as if his soul could fly free…and then Roberto snapped those wings._

_A knock on the door brought Don back to the real world and the smell of the beef stew covered the room and made his stomach growl._

_"Brought you supper". Miguel said._

_Don put on a frown, "I'm not hungry". His stomach begged to differ._

_"Haha. Yeah, right."_

_Swallowing his pride, Don took the plate and dug in. No one would blame him, that beef stew could conquer kingdoms._

_"Easy, there, champ," Miguel said, handing a glass of water to his little brother._

_After a few minutes of the kid eating like an animal and filling his belly with the delicious meal. The two brothers went back to the window, star gazing like they use to with their dear grandfather._

_"Miguel….". Don's voice was low and fearful. He probably had even more doubts than his brother. "Do you regret it?"._

_"What do you mean?"._

_"Leaving the guards… It was your dream. You worked so hard to be a Kingdom guard…you ever think that maybe you shouldn't have left?"._

_Miguel had a smile with a bit of melancholy, "Well, I kinda had to take care of a little brat with way too much energy for his size, haha"._

_Miguel chuckled but Don retrieved into his own doubts and sadness. He always felt guilty for his brother having to give up on his dream to raise him. Miguel was about 8 years older than him and when their grandfather passed away, he had no choice but to go back to Castañula and become a guardian to little Donny._

_"Hey," the big brother said, playfully messing with his little brother's hair, "Stop with that frown. Remember what grandpa use to say"._

_"Knights don't let their enemies see them cry". Don said._

_"They make them tremble at the sight of their smiles". Miguel completed. Their grandfather was a veteran of the Great War. A True knight forged in the fires of battle._

_"I don't regret it, kid. I do miss it, of course, but I've never regretted it" Miguel said, a warm smile in his face._

_Don, however, still dabbled in doubts "But, why? I mean…your dream died. It's over."._

_"Over? Is that what you think happened? Kid, a dream never dies until you make it true"._

_"Stop quoting grandpa". Don said. Miguel was taken aback for a bit. Maybe he was trying to seek wisdom in his grandfather, but Margarita was right, Don needed his words, and the right words had to come to him._

_"Don. My dream wasn't just to be a Kingdom guard. I wanted my life to mean something. I wanted to grow to protect others. I wanted to dedicate my life to stand by the side of those who needed me…If you ask me, I think I'm living my dream right here"._

_Don, reflected a bit. Living his dream? How could he say something like that? His brother was trapped in this village because of him, what kind of dream was that?"._

_"Donny…why do you want to be a huntsman?". Miguel asked._

_"…I want a life of adventure. I don't want this village to be my life. I want to explore and make my name known. I want to be like the heroes in the book. Be a hero that saves people and is loved by everyone. Leave my mark in this world. I want people to remember my name. Be the main character of my own story". Don said, staring at the moon just aneling for the future he wished with all his heart. "That's the life I want to have. The future I want to get"._

_Miguel felt a bit of pride in his little brother. He knew the kid had the heart to reach the stars he looked with such passion, but he needed someone he could lean on. "You can't live in a fantasy world, Donny"._

_"Not you too! What's so wrong about fantasy anyways? The world is far more interesting in the books. I want my life to be just like that"._

_"Oh, so you want to be the chosen one? The hero who grabs a sword and kills Wyverns in a single swing? Kid, the real world doesn't work like that" Miguel said, having a smug face that was getting in Don's nerves._

_"Then screw reality!". Don said but was soon interrupted by Miguel's hat falling on his head and covering his eyes._

_"You see? that's your problem, lad. You think fantasy is so much better than reality, you are not seeing the marvels reality can bring". Miguel lifted the hat and let Don see again. "Don. There are no chosen ones in this world. Reality is not like fantasy"._

_Don was saddened by those words, once again his dreams were being crushed._

_"But…". Miguel said, and a glimmer of hope filled Don's heart. "Dreams do come true; fantasy can become reality. I told you, I am living my dream. It might not be how I dreamed it but it is my dream, and I believe you can live yours too"._

_The melody of a flute entered the room, sweet notes that merged with the sounds of the crickets, and the soft breeze rattling the trees and caressing the grass. Margarita was playing her flute outside the windmill; she was sitting on a wooden chair illuminated by the full moon._

_"You have talent, Don. But you will never be a chosen one, and you know what? Good. Chosen ones are chumps who get everything handed to them in a silver platter. Do you want to be a hero? You can't keep expecting you'll become one overnight, that is a fantasy. But reality? In the real world, you don't get a future, you build one"._

_Don looked at Miguel in awe, the sweet melody filling his heart and his brother's words were giving back life to his crushed dream._

_"You want your dream to become true? You won't do that trapped in your fantasy books. You gotta put in the effort. Work hard, day, and night. Your dream won't become true, Donny, you have to make it true". Miguel said, his hand on his brother's shoulder. Don couldn't help but tear up and Miguel quickly gave his brother a supportive hug. "I'll help you, little brother. You know I always will"._

_That song, those words. Don could never forget that night. The night his brother and his sister-in-law gave him his wings back, the wings of a dreamer ready to fly._

* * *

The village was still under commotion, but the danger had finally passed. The civilians were being taken care of and the Grimm swarm was effectively repelled thanks to the prompt arrival of a patrolling unit of guards from Gaviota sent to aid the neighboring villages close to the port city.

"Captain, the two huntsmen as requested". A solider said addressing his superior who was preparing their next course of action in her tent at her make swift camp.

"Thank you. Let them in". The captain said. Mistral's Kingdom Guard might not have been as imponent as the Atlas Military, but their soldiers were fierce, a simple look at the captain inspired respect, not just because of her uniform, it was her eyes, that no-nonsense gaze made people tense, Don and Jaune certainly were.

"So, you were the huntsmen who helped the village before our arrival? You'll have to forgive me, but you two don't really look like huntsmen to me".

"I…" Don hesitated to answer, Jaune however pushed through his own nerves to continue the conversation.

"We can handle ourselves…most of the time…" Jaune said awkwardly, he was still very intimidated by the captain who simply served a cup of tea for herself. He wasn't even sure if she paid any attention to what he said.

"Well, I suppose I must thank you. You bought us enough time to save the village".

"We did what we had to do. The people needed our help" Jaune answered without thinking, somehow his own values and conviction pierced through the intimidation. Don turned his face in shame. The kid might have been a hero, but he acted like a coward…like he may have always been.

The captain did notice the answer this time, "Now that's huntsman talk. I'm Captain Ludmila of the 5th Vanguard of Gaviota. Tea?".

The two knights sat and the captain had a guard serving them some tea. She began to be more trusting of the pair, they weren't her enemies, after all, she mainly wanted to see if they could be good enough allies. "I'll go straight to the point, gentlemen. Gaviota has been hunting down the gang that attacked this village for months by now. This attack might be the closest we have been to them, but we arrived unprepared. We could use the help of two huntsmen like yourselves".

Don was a bit worried, "I..hehe. Let's not get ahead of ourselves. I'm sure you can ha…".

"We'll do it". Jaune answered, interrupting Don and staring a dagger at him. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. Don was backing away from helping others? Even saying this was an adventure would have been more like his former self, but this? No, Jaune wasn't going to let him.

"Huh, that easy? I honestly thought I would have to offer you a reward. Very well." The captain displayed a holographic map in front of them, showing the surrounding area. "Our target is known as the 'White Moon Tribe'. They run a faunus trafficking ring, slave trade. We have been able to capture their costumers and free some of their victims, but we need to cut the suppliers if we want to keep the population safe. We believe their hideout is somewhere in the Azul Valley, right in the middle of the mountains to the northeast.".

Jaune took a good look at the map. "Any cave systems? Maybe a town they could use as a secret hideout" He asked, remembering his experience with Jessie the Viper Fang and Capt. Fred the Pentahook.

"Plenty of caves, we have explored many but no signs yet. The valley has no towns, not even former settlements. Just a deep forest and a couple of waterfalls". The captain answered.

"Hmn…Don, what do you think?". Jaune asked, hoping to get something out of his mentor. But the old man had his arms crossed and his eyes turned to the empty space to the side. "Don?", Jaune insisted.

"..Fine," The old man said reluctantly. He stood up and gave a good look at the map for a minute. "The bandits had horses, crossing the forest with them could be hard unless they had a clear path".

"No paths, I told you it's a deep forest".

"But you also mentioned waterfalls. Following the river might be the easiest route for the horses and there is a river that flows near the village. Follow the river and you might find your bandits.". Don completed, still with a serious and frustrated look in his face.

Jaune was a bit relieved and a part of him was glad that there was still some hero in his mentor, he knew that he could bring that smile back, he just needed some time.

The captain gave it a quick thought. "Sounds like a plan. Just a problem. The river splits in three streams the deeper you get in the mountains. They could have taken any route. I have to leave some troops here to protect the village in case the Grimm or the gang return".

"We can take one of the streams. Your troops can take the other two".

Don didn't like this; he didn't want to get involved. He let out a sigh, something Jaune clearly noticed, but the people needed them and he had already offered their aid.

"Very well. Rogers, get them some water and rations, we are departing in 1 hour".

* * *

_Mornings were so peaceful on Saturdays at Castañuela. Nothing but birds and the wind that made that windmill move. If you had a nice warm bed, you could sleep there all day without a worry in the world…._

_"RISE AND SHINE, DIRTBAG!"_

_"AH! SON OF A…". Don's yell was drowned with a bucked of ice-cold water. "WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU!?"._

_Miguel and Margarita kept laughing and high fiving each other._

_"You were right, the bucket was a great idea"._

_"You should really listen to your wife more often, you know?". Margarita said, tossing the bucket aside with a big smile on her face._

_"What time is it?"._

_"Dawn, kiddo. Do you want to be a huntsman? Get your ass out of bed, we are going training!"._

_And thus, the routine began. Miguel and Margarita were determined to help Don reach his dream, but building a future requires effort, discipline, and dedication, none of which the boy had. Fortunately for him, he had a brother with vast experience in the military and a sister-in-law with her own potato gun._

_"W-What is she going to do with that?.."._

_"Don't worry about it…Now" Miguel finished tying bags with heavy rocks on Don's belt and looked at him with a mischievous smile. "Run"._

_" What!?". The potatoes flew and so did Don as he ran for his life._

_"Keep moving! We want you to be a lightning bolt on the battlefield!" Miguel said, sipping on his morning coffee._

_"Ahhhh!Miguuueeeell! Ow!"._

_"Wow, nice shot, honey"._

_"Keep that in mind next time Cindy flirts with you"._

_"Duly noted"._

_With the days, Miguel continued Don's training. He taught him everything he knew. He started with building his body, he made him run up and down mountains, he made him carry heavy bags around town and back, he made him work at the windmill until he couldn't feel his arms. And once he started to get in shape, he built his skill._

_Don had trained in sword fighting before, he mainly got his sword and shield because that's what heroes in books always had, but Miguel had seen the real world, and he had picked up skills in another weapon._

_"A stick?"._

_"For the little colt? You get a stick. You work and learn to jog, you get a pipe, and eventually…" Miguel, took a weapon covered in a red cloth, when he uncovered it, the shining metal tip blinded Don for a bit, and soon enough marveled him with its beauty, "You grow into a stallion, and run like the wind, my boy"._

_Miguel was a master of the spear, he became famous among his fellow guards for his speed and agility with the weapon, The Raging Wind, they called him._

_Don had troubles getting the hang of the weapon, but as the months passed, he became rather proficient with it. He quickly grew to get a pipe and was determined to be worthy of a spear, like his brother._

_"You are an annoying little brat, you know?"._

_"Why thank you!"._

_"Haha! That's what I mean! Use it, lad! Annoy your opponent, make them angry, make them lose focus and strike!"._

_Miguel of course didn't stop there. Weapon combat was one thing, but the kid had to handle himself on his own and not rely on a weapon._

_"Raise your fists, boy". He instructed._

_"I know how to throw a punch, Miguel"._

_"Oh, do you? Ok then, I guess we can skip the basics and go into expert mode, don't you think, honey?"._

_Margarita approached the two, tying bandages around her arms and fist._

_"Wow, wow! What's this? I'm not fighting Margarita!"._

_"Aw, what's wrong? Chickening out on me?". Margarita said after tying her hair in a ponytail._

_"No offense, but you are a delicate flower, I don't want to hur…" A fist to the face shut the kid up._

_"Ow, I'm so hurt! Haha!" Margarita said mockingly. "Get up! Hunstman! Show me what you got!"._

_Don stood up and rose his fists. The two circled each other for a few seconds before Don tried a strike. The boy threw a couple of punches but Margarita easily evaded them, she waited for the opportunity and finally grabbed his wrist, twisted his arm, kicked his legs and using his own momentum, made him lose balance, tossing him around like a rag doll and making him land on his back._

_"Aww, such a delicate flower"._

_"H-How?!"._

_"Her mother was a martial artist from a temple in Mistral. Why do you think I always do the dishes?"._

_"And will do the laundry while I keep beating your butt, right, sweetie?". Margarita said with a sweet smile as she gently slapped her husband's cheek._

_"Y-Yes dear…" Miguel felt oddly threatened._

_Weeks became months and months became a year. Miguel and Margarita had trained Don's body and mind. It wasn't enough to just learn how to fight, he needed discipline, he needed to be smart and clever, so, they put him in charge of the farm animals and cleaning the house. Don hated both tasks but that was the point, he had to learn to do his duty and take it seriously._

_Miguel was strict but he didn't prevent his brother from having some fun as well, in fact, that's what he wanted him to have. It's like they say, do what you love and you won't work a day in your life. Miguel knew that the best way to encourage his brother to develop his skill was through fun. He turned some training sessions into games, every moment of leisure was secretly an activity to develop a skill. Going to the beach? Swimming is a great exercise. He even used what Don loved the most, his fantasy books, as ways of training him. Strategies, problem-solving, analysis, Miguel used the books to educate Don in as many subjects as he could and to teach him how to effectively address a situation._

_Weeks became months, months became years. For as much dedication to improving himself as Don had now, he still wasn't good enough._

_Twice more did he fail Roberto's trail, he had wasted too much time, but even Roberto had seen the improvement._

_"Keep your shield up! Huntsmen are the protectors of the world. Remnant depends on you! Your failure brings disgrace to all Huntsmen, and worse, it brings the death of everyone counting on you!". Roberto kept saying as his trainees spared with one another._

_To his surprise, Don had managed to swiftly disarm his opponent with a quick move of his sword and launched him to the ground with a shield bash._

_The two locked eyes, Don breathing heavily, but to his surprise, Roberto's stoic face cracked a smile, "Nice"._

_Don smiled proudly until his opponent took the advantage and hit him, making him fall to the ground._

_"Not good enough", Roberto said. But this didn't stop Don, he kept trying and trying and working every day, every week. Determine to one day, make his dream come true._

_On the anniversary of their third year of training, Miguel took Don to a grassy field, the green hill they stood on was being caressed by the wind._

_"Ready for our spar?". Miguel said._

_"No... Please, don't get mad. I lost my sword and my shield a few days ago. I was going to tell you! But I was hoping to find it first and…"._

_"Hahaha. It's alright, buddy. I took it. Tell me, you know what a Rocinante is?". Miguel said._

_"No idea"._

_"Grandpa once told me that back in his days, they called 'rocin' those horses that were weak, skinny, and sick. That's kinda what you are"._

_"…Thanks?"._

_"What I mean is that you use to be lazy and a stubborn idiot. Weak, fragile…"._

_"Ok, OK! I get it! I suck!"._

_Miguel let out a laugh, "Hahaha! No, kid. You USE to suck. Not anymore". Miguel took an object wrapped in a brown paper bag and took the wrapping off, revealing Don's sword and shield, shiny, reforged, it looked brand new._

_"A Rocinante however, is a name with redemption, a useless horse reshaped a new, a former rocin, now a noble steed. That's who you are now, Donny. You are reforged, you grew into a noble man, and I have no doubt you'll become a true hero. You put in the effort…and now I think you are ready". Miguel put the sword in a sucked of the shield and the weapon unfolded. Don looked with teary eyes as his weapon turned into a spear. "Grandpa used to say that a true Knight Errant endures all adversities, dedicates themselves to grow and protect the innocent. Dominique, a true hero doesn't fight for praise, they fight because it's the right thing to do. Raise your weapon to defend those who need you, only then can you be a hero…And I'm sure that a hero, is what you were meant to be, brother. Make me proud"._

_Don couldn't stop crying; he ran to his brother's arms and buried his face on his chest. "I will…I will make you proud"._

_"I know you will"._

_After a few minutes, Don recovered composure and Miguel handed over his new spear._

_"Rocinante. I love it!"._

_"Well, Grandpa might have misremembered the name. Apparently, it's also how they called morons where he was from"._

_"Yeah, I like the other meaning better."._

* * *

Dusk finally arrived as Jaune and Don marched with Captain Ludmila and her troops. The captain was pleased to see that Don's hunch seemed to be right, they found horse footprints alongside the river which told them they were on the right track. It wasn't all good news though. The footprints were on both sides of the river and between the grassy and rocky terrain and with the loss of sunlight, losing their way was becoming a serious risk.

There was no way of knowing where the bandits stopped following the river's stream, but with how erratic the footprints were, it seemed like they purposely crossed it side by side to cover their tracks. Out in the wild, holding prisoners in the middle of a forest swarming with Grimm, a bandit tribe wouldn't be able to survive unless they had the brains and the brawns to do so.

After hours of marching, the troops finally reached the spot they were dreading, a 3-way fork that leads deeper into the mountains, straight into the Azul Valley.

"This is where we split, soldiers. I'll take Squad A north; Squad B will travel north-east. Huntsmen, you'll take north-west. Do not engage the White Moon tribe under any circumstances. If you find them, mark the location in your scrolls, and get back to this fork, we will have a garrison on guard. All squads will regroup before dawn, that's when we will strike, but if things go south, each team has a flare gun, in case of an emergency, we will all regroup at the signal flare. Understood?".

"Yes, ma'am". The troops said, joining their respective squads and beginning their search.

Ludmila took a look at Jaune and Don. The young man seemed focused, determined to get the job done, she liked that expression, not so much the one the old man had. Don seemed miserable like he wanted to be anywhere else other than in this mission. Such an attitude was a liability and she was not going to tolerate it.

"Huntsman. Any problem?".

Don crossed eyes with her for a second and then turned away, not able to face her. "No, ma'am…but don't call me that, please".

"This is not a picnic; I'm not going to call you by your name just so that you can feel better".

"That's not what I meant" Don replied.

"Oh, and what did you mean then?".

Don stayed silent for a small second, he took a deep breath and continued, "I'm not a…" He was stopped when Jaune returned with a bottle of water for his old mentor.

"Here, stay hydrated….Is there something wrong?". Jaune asked.

Ludmila didn't have time for curiosity or small talk, "Just keep an eye on your grandpa, kid. I want you focused on saving those faunus, both of you".

"Yes ma'am" Jaune answered.

Ludmila glared daggers at Don, the old man was stubborn but the captain emanated authority just with her presence.

" _Sigh_ …Yes, Ma'am". Don replied reluctantly.

The captain walked away, taking her squad upstream and leaving the two huntsmen to their mission, there were innocent people dependent on their success.

Hours passed as Don and Jaune stepped deeper into the mountains. Darkness made tracks hard to find and without a full moon, they only relied on their instincts and the dim light of Jaune's scroll.

Not a single word had been spoken since they began their search. Only the sounds of the forest, the wind, the river, the bugs, and the occasional growl of a nearby Grimm broke the silence between the young apprentice and his mentor.

Finally, Jaune couldn't take the silence anymore, "You are awfully quiet".

"I'm focused like the Captain said. You should do the same. The sooner we are done with this the sooner you'll be with your friend, right?", Don responded with a saddened tone.

"…Yeah, I guess so". He had to be honest, a side of him has eager to finally see Ruby again. But his worries for Don were a pressing matter. To his surprise, the old man didn't fall back in that silent void.

"Tell me. After…the Fall…why did you follow her? You told me everything that happened. After all of that, were you trying to get as far away from Vale as you could?". Don asked, he didn't mean harm with that question, at that moment he just felt reality distorted into a cynical view, it was that cynicism what made him question even the nature of heroism itself.

"What? No…well…not entirely" Jaune answered, he stopped to give it a quick thought, reflecting in everything he went through and everything he had learned. "I followed Ruby because she inspired me to stand up and keep on fighting. It's not like she healed me instantly of course…but if it wasn't for her…".

Don listened carefully, reflecting at the same time on all of his own regrets.

"Now that I think about it…Maybe I was trying to run, Vale has so many painful memories…But I wasn't running away. Ruby inspired me to run towards the place I could help others. When we traveled to Haven, I barely talked, at times I was so numbed I kept tripping and falling….I suppose…My ghosts were weighing me down, but I didn't run from them… I just made the mistake of letting them haunt me". Jaune caressed Pyrrha's sash on his waist, looking back with regret to the way he acted for a long time, but a part of him was proud of finally feeling at peace.

Don in turn, caressed the tip of the hat, remembered the man who it once belonged to. "I have far too many ghosts. I'm terrified of them. I've been running away for a long long time".

"You have to face them, Don".

Don got a smile filled with sadness and self-hatred, "Easy for you to say, lad. I've seen the kind of man you are. But, me? I'm a coward. I'm too weak to face my ghosts, so I'll just continue running from them, that way, they won't ever catch me".

Jaune stopped and faced Don, "You can't do that forever".

Don patted the boy's shoulder, "That's what cowards do, we run away".

"Stop it" The more Jaune heard his mentor's words the less he recognized him, "You are not a coward, Don. After all we have been through, you can't tell me you are a coward. You are a hero".

"And you are a fool if you believe that, boy". Don replied.

The boy kept quiet, shock, anger, frustration, and sadness were overwhelming him.

The old man continued, "A hero wouldn't have thought twice to save that woman, would he?".

Jaune stayed quiet, he didn't want to admit it but he himself felt so much disappointment for what had happened earlier that day.

Don saw the boy's disappointed eyes, they stabbed his heart but he felt he deserved every bit of it, "Thought so".

Don walked away, he knew how worthless he was, how much pain he had brought. He always brought nothing but troubles to everyone he loved. How could he see himself as a hero? Heroes don't go around making up stories of how great they are, they don't fight for their own glory, but that's exactly what Don had been doing for so long. A hero? Don refused to see himself as such…yet the boy said something…that shattered through that wall of misery in his heart.

"You are a hero to me".

Don turned around in shock, behind him stood the boy he tricked into this journey all those months ago. After everything he made him go through…why? Why would he see him like that?

"..Kid..".

Jaune wiped away a tear, "Let's just go. We wasted enough time alrea…AH!". A bola came from the bushes tying up the young huntsman and throwing him to the ground in front of his mentor.

"Jaune!". Don tried to rush to his apprentice's aid, but soon enough, a second set of bolas tied him as well and for a finishing blow, two cattle prod shocked them.

"Well, well, well. Look who it is. The punk who stole my prey. Lucky me. Maybe the boss will be happy with you two".

Don and Jaune were shocked again and again until both of them fell unconscious, captured but the White Moon tribe.

* * *

_"I'm I too late?! Is she here?!", Don had never been as excited as that day. He got a message from his brother and immediately ran as fast as he could, ignoring the yells of the merchants whose products he dropped on his way. Nothing would have stopped him to arrive to the clinic that day._

_"Let me see!"._

_"Shhhh! Can't you be quieter? They are both resting". Miguel responded, smacking his little brother with his hat. He had bags in his eyes but the brightest smile Remnant had ever seen._

_"Sorry, I just…"._

_"It's ok, come. Take a look" Margarita said, she looked exhausted laying on that bed, but her tired smile was as beautiful as a flower field but not as beautiful as the small treasure in her arms._

_"Sh-She is so small," Don said holding back his tears. "Hey, little one"._

_The baby had her father's brown hair but the freckles and beauty of her mother. She was still confused, new to this world, but surrounded by the love of her family._

_"Hey, little…uh"._

_"Amatista…It was Margarita's mom's name"._

_Don smiled, barely being able to hold his tears anymore. "Well, it suits her. She is the most beautiful gem in Remn…" He has stunned, his mind went blank when the little baby, so full of wonder, grabbed the finger of her dear uncle. Don couldn't handle it anymore; his tears just came out and there was no holding back anymore._

_Miguel grabbed his shoulder and Don came back to the real world. He stood up and hugged his older brother, tears running from both of their eyes. "Congratulations, Miguel"._

_"Thank you, Donny". Miguel responded._

_There wasn't a happier day in the Cervantes' family than the day their little gem was born, Amatista Cervantes was a dream come true._

_That night, while Margarita and Amatista got a well-deserved rest, Don and Miguel stood outside the windmill, cold beers on their hands, the dreamer brothers stargazed once more, looking at their hopes and dreams on each and every star in the sky._

_"You got lucky; you know? Thank the Gods she resembles Margarita. Can't imagine that cute baby with your ugly face on her, haha!"._

_"Pff. Please, everyone knows I got the looks and you got…well, no, I also got the brains, little brother". Miguel responded. Laughter, clinging mugs and the sounds of the crickets were the music that filled their hearts that night._

_"She is my treasure. Arg! I've had her for a day and I already love her so much!" Miguel said._

_Don raised his mug once more, "I'm proud of you, Big bro. You'll be an amazing father; I have no doubt of that"._

_"Hehe. Well, I got a lot of practice with the mess of a little brother I have"._

_"Oh, come on! I'm trying to…"._

_"Thanks, Donny. I mean it". Miguel responded. His eyes went straight to the stars again. "I'm living my dream, Don. You have no idea how much I doubted I could make it, but I did. I can finally say that my dream is reality"._

_Don was proud of his brother, but his words had him a bit confused as well, "I'm mean, not exactly. This isn't what you said when we were kids". And with that, the usual smack to the back of the head from Miguel was delivered._

_"That's because dreams evolve, dumbass"._

_"Why do you always have to do that?!". Don complained._

_Miguel didn't take his eyes away from the stars, "The funny thing about dreams, Don, is that they aren't always how you imagine them. Over time, your dreams can evolve, change and sometimes, new dreams can come out. It's like planting a tree, you know where you planted it, and you know what it's going to be, but you don't know how it will grow, what it has to endure to grow, how many branches and leaves it's going to get, but when the day comes, you'll take a look at it, and be proud of what you created"._

_Don took a long look at his drink, barely seeing his reflection on it. "But what if the tree burns down? Or what if it never grows?"._

_"Then you take the seeds and plant them again. A dream never truly dies until you make it a reality, and a new dream can be born at any second, it just takes a bit of imagination to plant it, and a dreamer to help it grow"._

_Don always admired his older brother, even when they fought, he never stopped looking up to him. He was his hero._

_"But enough of poetry. How about your dream? Huntsman?". Miguel asked._

_Don began to act smug and confident; it had been nearly 4 years since they started training seriously and for the first time, he felt ready for anything the world could throw at him, "Well, Roberto said that the next exam is in a few months. So, by the end of the year, you could either be talking to an Academy student, or a badass fully grown Huntsman!"._

_Miguel laughed while his little brother kissed his muscles, at least now he had them. "Haha. Well, 'Mr. Fully Grown Huntsman'. I want you to make me a promise"._

_"Yes, I will give you my autograph, you just need to make an appointment". Don smiled waiting for a laugh or a smack to the back of his head, but to his surprise, Miguel just stood there with a kind smile._

_"I want you to promise me, that you'll always protect Amatista". Miguel said._

_Don was stunned, he had no words._

_Miguel continued, "Promise me that no matter what happens, you'll always be there when she needs you. Promise me you'll be her hero, her brave knight…her guardian angel"._

_Don's heart raised and his hand started shaking, but a fire ignited in his eyes, "I promise. I will always be there for her. I promise I will always protect her. That's the path of a huntsman I want to walk. I'll make a world where she'll be safe, you have my word"._

_"I know I can count on you, Brother". Miguel responded._

_The dreamer brothers spent the rest of the night drinking and laughing, telling stories, and sharing their hopes and dreams until dawn came. There weren't happier days than those…if only they had lasted._

_Months passed and the day finally came. Roberto was ready to select his candidates for the Academy exams. The students were nervous, but in the crowd, a silent young man sat there in anticipation._

_"Ok, dirtbags. I have here the list of candidates for the Academy exams. If I say your name, stand up. Got it? Good. Ramirez, Huntsman Academy. Gutierrez, Huntsman Academy. Herrera, License Exam. Ce…"._

_"I want a test fight", Don said, breaking the silence from the crowd and surprising Roberto._

_"…I haven't finished"._

_"Please" Don stood up and approached his teacher, his eyes were on fire and his resolve was unbreakable. "I want to earn my place as a Huntsman….Roberto. I know I've failed you over and over again, but I've put in the effort. I need to prove to you and to myself that I'm ready to protect the people that need me, that I can bring honor to the title of a Huntsman"._

_Roberto stood there, silent. He took a quick look at the boy and responded, "This better not be an ego thing, boy"._

_"No, sir. I'm just another man wanting to make a difference. But the title of Huntsman deserves respect, and I want to know if I'm worthy of it"._

_For the first time in years, the little idiot he knew showed genuine respect for the profession. Roberto couldn't believe his eyes and ears. He still thought he was a prideful idiot, had he only waited a bit longer he would have realized there was no need…or maybe there was. Don just wanted to prove himself, he didn't want to boast, he wasn't doing this for an ego boost. Huntsmen had to be the best of the best, men and women who were willing to give it their all to protect humanity. For the first time, Roberto felt he understood Don._

_"... Ramirez, Gutierrez, Herrera. Grab your weapons and step in the arena". Roberto instructed._

_"Wait…3 against 1?"._

_Roberto smiled as he took his tower shield from his back. "You have been training here for 4 years, lad. You got an opponent for each year of training you got. 3 students…and me"._

_Don felt a bit intimidated, but he quickly recovered composure, he was determined to make his dream come true. "Understood"._

_"Haha! Ok then" Roberto stepped in the arena and slammed his shield on the floor. "Show me what you are made of!"._

_Don stood nervous as his four opponents readied their weapons, but the dreamer was ready to fight his way towards the future he wanted to build, he now had someone he wanted to protect more than anyone in the world. He drew his sword and readied his shield; he took a deep breath…and stroked._

* * *

Everything was blurry, only some muffled voices could be heard, but Jaune could feel movement. He was disorientated but could feel himself being dragged. Yet he remained half-awake for a few minutes, going in and out of consciousness until finally, the cold water from a waterfall woke him up.

His body was still numb and the darkness of the cave blinded him, but when his eyes finally adjusted, he could see the torches of his captors and next to him, the body of his mentor inside a net being dragged just like him.

Jaune tried to take his sword with his tied hands, but the weapon was gone, and to make matters worse, in his struggle he accidentally dropped the flare gun he had on him. None of the captors noticed the dropped weapon, but they did notice his movements.

"Almost there, pretty boy, hahah". A bandit said before shocking him once more.

"Ahh!" The pain of the cattle prod only lasted a few seconds before Jaune fell unconscious once more.

He didn't know how long he was out, but he finally woke up amongst the cheers of drinking bandits.

"Wh-Don…Don!". Jaune looked around, still disorientated but worry about his old mentor. He looked around and soon learned he was trapped in a cage; his hands still tied this time to his back. The cage could hold 5 people but it only had 3, Jaune, a frightened boy, and his old teacher.

"Don, Don, wake up, please". Jaune crawled his way to Don and tried to wake him up, it didn't take much for the old man to open his eyes.

"Jaune?...Jaune! Boy, are you ok?!". Don said, his head was killing him but his concern over his mentee's safety was greater.

"I've been better". Jaune answered. He once again took a look at his surroundings. The camp was located inside a natural cave hidden behind a waterfall, a tunnel traveled deep into a mountain and it opened to a large dome area without a ceiling. The dome opened up to reveal the sky and the moon. It was the perfect hideout, hidden from both humans and Grimm alike, plenty of natural water and access to the sunlight during the day.

Around them, many cages were filled with the kidnapped faunus villagers, too many to be just from that one village. While they sat frightened, their bandit captors celebrated a successful hunt, some were guarding the camp and the prisoners while others just ate, drank, sang, cheered, and played cards.

"We gotta get out of here".

"Our hands are tied, there are dozens of people here and we are weaponless," Don remarked.

"Sounds like a challenge, right?". Jaune responded with a smile. But Don wasn't having any of it.

"It sounds pointless". Don answered. Jaune might have done it out of custom, but Don was not the same man he was, he hadn't been for a while now.

"Well, we have to try something!".

"And get ourselves, killed? Not a chance, kid. I already made you go through enough". Don answered.

Jaune was growing ever more frustrated with his mentor's attitude. "These people need us, Don!".

"No, they don't!" Don and Jaune locked eyes. The old man had grown nihilistic, all those speeches of heroism, that hopeful attitude and will to fight were gone now, the man had given up and accepted the grim reality of the world. "These people need Ludmila. These people need a true hero. They don't need a crazy useless old man and a kid playing to be something they are not!".

Jaune was stunned, was that it? After everything they have faced, was his mentor, the man he looked up to, was he just going to give up?

"Just sit down. There is nothing else to do".

"…There is nothing you want to do". Jaune responded.

"Kid..".

"No. I don't want to hear it". Not after all the trails they had gone through, the boy learned he just couldn't give up. "A kid playing hero? Is that what you think about me? Let me tell you something. I might be young, but I've seen how cruel this world can be, and I will not turn my back on the people that need me…She never did, and I can't do less".

There was a time Don felt the exact same way. His brother fought so hard to protect everyone he loved and everyone that needed him. How could he do less? But at that moment in that cage, Don just felt he could never do anything. "Then I'm glad you are a better man than I, boy. I guess I was wrong, these people do need you…they just can't count on this crazy old man".

The cage was hit aggressively. The two huntsmen turned immediately to see a tall young man with black hair, tanned skin, and deep blue eyes standing on the other side. "You, old man. Tell me your name".

"My name?".

"Yes, your name! Are you deaf?! Are you Dominique Cervantes?". The young man said.

Jaune and Don were surprised by his response. How did this man know Don's name? Stunned, Don could just nod in confirmation.

"Hehe. Cool…Let him out". The young man ordered the guards who promptly opened the cage and grabbed Don, much to his student's dismay.

"Hey! Wha-Let me go, you piece of…"

"Don! No! Let him go! Let him go!". Jaune stood up and tried to fight the bandits back, he managed to tackle one before the young blue-eyed bandit punched him in the stomach and made him drop to his knees.

"Jaune!".

"Don't play hero, jackass".

"Let-Let him go…".

The blue-eyed bandit hit him with his knee right in the nose. "Just stay down, moron. You two, take him to my grandfather".

"Don!".

"It's ok, lad. Stay there! Please don't hurt him! I'll cooperate, please!". Don pleaded.

The blue-eyed bandit couldn't help but chuckle. "Huh, who would have thought you were the smart one. Go on! What are you waiting for? Grandpa is waiting! Move!". He ordered and soon enough, the bandits took Don, leaving Jaune laying on the dirt of the cage.

* * *

_The fight took 30 straight minutes but Don stood strong, even with 4 opponents fighting him at once. The young man was beaten and tired, but he was determined and he had managed to leave his opponents exhausted as well._

_"Not, bad, Cervantes"._

_"I'm not going down. I have someone I must protect. For her…I'll become a huntsman!"._

_Herrera launched a new strike with her Scimitars, But Don was able to block her slashes and whistle in short rapid succession, making use of his semblance to disorientate her and strike her with his shield._

_Almost immediately, Gutierrez brought his great sword down on him, but Don managed to evade it, spinning as if dancing in the battlefield, he managed to bypass his guard and slash him on the back._

_Don planted his feet on the ground in time to block Ramirez's Warhammer, letting it slide to make her lose balance, he responded with two shield bashes that pushed her back._

_Don stood exhausted, surrounded, and weaken, but he stood._

_"Your aura must be almost gone by now. How much longer can you continue, eh?". Roberto asked, taunting the young hero._

_The situation looked grim, if he wanted to reach his goal, Don had to end this quickly, he had to give it his all. His dream was withing arm's reach, he just needed one last push._

_"It's pointless. You know it is. Don't be such a stubborn idiot…give up"._

_Those words again, "Give up". There were times in which he considered it, it pained him but there were times in which it just seemed like the world didn't want him to keep going. The more the world weighted his shoulders the more Don wondered if he should keep going, or if it was as Roberto said, pointless._

_His opponents circled him; their weapons ready wanting blood. His aura was almost gone, using his semblance once more would deplete it completely, the situation looked hopeless. After all this time, failure was once again at his doorstep._

_Don lowered his sight, putting his shield on his back and stowing his sword._

_"Finally, a smart mo…" Roberto was about to say until the young man in front of him raised his arms, his fist, and his sight, the fire in his eyes was not extinguished._

_Roberto smiled, he took the challenge, slammed his shield on the ground, and his students charged for one final strike._

_Dominique Cervantes, brother of Miguel Cervantes, The Raging Wind. Brother-in-law of Margarita Cervantes, the daughter of the Mistralian martial arts temples. Uncle of Amatista Cervantes, the gem, the treasure of the future. Giving up was not an option for the dreamer._

_Don evaded Herrera´s Scimitars, grabbed her writs, and used her momentum to move her to the side, right in the path of Ramirez's Warhammer. When the girl fell to the ground, one of her scimitars ended in Don's hand which he quickly used to slash Ramirez's arm and chest, he kicked her and made her fall. As the handle of the Warhammer dropped, Don caught it and swung the weapon, Gutierrez's greatsword slashed Don's back but the shield on him protected him, he spun and slammed Gutierrez before he could recover. He then dropped the Warhammer on Ramirez's chest, finishing her off._

_Roberto couldn't believe his eyes. Don took down three of his best students in a single strike._

_As the dust settled, Roberto saw in awe as the useless, dumb kid he once knew, stood with a smile on his face, his sword, and shield in hand._

_"As long as I have a dream and someone to protect…" Don activated his spear, "I'll never give up!"._

_The young man charged. Roberto prepared himself for the impact. To his surprise, Don threw his spear like a javelin, striking his shield with force, however, because the spear wasn't attached to him, Roberto's semblance couldn't return the damage. Don quickly caught the spear in midair, the strike was a fake-out, he caught Roberto off guard and spun around him, bypassing his shied._

_Don quickly put his spear's staff against Roberto's neck, climbing to his back._

_"Gross! You are all sweaty!"._

_"You annoying little, shit!"._

_Roberto tried to get him off his back, but Don used all the aura he had left in one final whistle right into his ear._

_"AHHHH!"._

_With that, Don jumped off and released his opponent, but Roberto was deep in a hallucination. He moved erratically and disorientated. In his vision, he saw multiple Dons, all with their spears ready and that smile, that smile that would make his enemies tremble._

_Don charged, stabbing Roberto's shield twice, he managed to throw him off guard, and thanks to the hallucinations, Roberto couldn't make use of his semblance. The spear quickly got in between Roberto's legs and with a quick sweep, the pro huntsman was on the ground. As the hallucinations dissipated, Roberto saw his shield being kicked out of his reach, a spear being pointed at his face, and the bright smile of Dominique Cervantes, the dreamer knight._

_"Stay…Down" Don said, exhausted, auraless, beaten but with a big smile. He was victorious. He managed to prove to himself he could do it; he could reach his dream._

_That evening, Don ran free like the wind. He couldn't believe it. He was one step closer to making his dream a reality. He felt like the weight of the world suddenly left his shoulders. He felt free. He felt proud. He couldn't wait to tell the news to Miguel and his family, that all their hard work was finally paying off…but the world has a cruel sense of humor. Sometimes, life just has its ways of stepping on your dreams and push them far from your reach._

_Don's smile vanished when at the distance, he saw the smoke cloud rise imponent. His mind went blank and he felt shivers in his entire body. It couldn't be…it couldn't be…but it was._

_Don ran as fast as he could, dropping his weapon and his backpack, anything that could drag him down, there was no time to waste. He finally reached the burning windmill and without a second thought, he rushed in hoping for his family to be safe…but he only found ash and heartbreak._

_"MIGUEL! MARGARITA!"._

_It took a few hours before the villagers arrived to help put out the fire. But by the time they arrived, they only found the young man on his knees. His heart became ash just like his home. His eyes were red and tears couldn't come out anymore. On his head was his dear brother's hat, his hero, his blood, his mentor, the man who gave up his dream to take care of him, who gave everything to help him achieve his goal, the nobleman who inspired him to be a better person and grow into a man who could be proud of his achievements. On his side was his sister in-law's flute, the sweet woman who showed him kindness, she raised him like a mother, she healed him when he was hurt, and her melodies always filled his heart with joy and hope. And on his arms, it was his niece, the treasure, the gem of the future, the princess of his brother's eyes._

_Amatista was covered in ash, but the baby was still alive. She was all Don had left of his family. The baby was alone in this cruel world, and so was the young man carrying her._

_The villagers tried to help him but Don was crushed. He didn't speak a word, he just stayed there without blinking. Just staring at the fires. The image of the burning windmill would come to haunt him for decades to come._

_The days passed and Don's spirit remained shattered. His entire world burned that night. He spent days unable to sleep until finally, exhaustion took him down. He couldn't rest for long though, not when the baby began to cry and the only person she could count on was him._

_A week after his loss, Don sat on his new porch, the villagers had given him a small house for him and Amatista, they owed it to his late brother. The young man sat with his eyes locked on his shield, his mind empty, just uncertainty and pain remained in his heart._

_He was brought back to reality by a familiar voice._

_"I'm sorry about your brother. He was a good man, better than most of us" Roberto said. Don however didn't respond, he just couldn't._

_Roberto got closer to the broken man and handed over a letter to him._

_"What's this?"._

_"Your recommendation. Take it to the main Kingdom and you can apply to a Huntsman Academy". Roberto said._

_A huntsman academy, that letter…it was the key to his dream. But at that moment, Don just couldn't take it._

_"I…"._

_"You earned it. I thought this is what you wanted"._

_Don got a faint smile after hearing those words, "I wanted it more than anything in this world…But I can't. My niece…she needs me". He said, sobbing through his words with a mix of regret, frustration, and sorrow._

_Roberto understood completely. "Do what you think is right, Cervantes…But just keep in mind, that the world is cruel and unfair…and only those who stand in defiance to that can call themselves Huntsmen". He said, he left the letter next to Don and departed, leaving the young man alone with his thoughts._

_That night after Don cradled Amatista to sleep, he went back outside and stared at the stars like he used to with his dear brother, the letter on his hand, he held it tightly. He had opened it and read it multiple times._

_"Dominique Cervantes, letter of recommendation," The letter said._

_Tears came back once more as he pushed the letter to his face in frustration._

_"It's should have been me…You were a true hero, she was the kindest soul in Remnant and I'm just a useless idiot…Why?...We worked so hard and my dream is so close and still…I would trade it all for you to come back…Please…I don't know what to do…I just…I just…"._

_The wind blew and Don's attention was caught by the sound of Miguel's hat flowing into his shield. He slowly knelt and picked it, seeing the moon illuminate Rocinante's shiny metal bits. He caressed the shield, the weapon that gave him so much hope, the gift his brother left him to tell him those words that made his heart ignite, "I believe in you"._

_Don went back to the day his niece was born. His promise to his brother resonated in his soul. He promised to always be by her side, to protect her no matter what. That's the hero he wanted to become…and that was exactly what he was going to be._

_Don ran to his workshop and with white paint, he drew on his shield his emblem, a burning windmill, a reminder of what he had lost and what he had to protect, to always remember that no matter how much the world kicked him, he will always stand strong in defiance to this cynical world._

_He marched to his backyard and put on Miguel's hat, always carrying the legacy of his brother in his journey._

_Don wanted nothing more than to become a huntsman. He wanted to be praised, he wanted glory and adventure…but that's not a hero. The hero he wanted to be was one who protected his loved ones no matter what. That baby, she was his world and he would stay by her side defending her for as long as he could stand, that was his resolve. He took the letter and ripped it to shreds. With sword and shield ready, he spent the rest of the night training to become his beloved niece's guardian angel._

_That was the noble ideal of young Dominique Cervantes. A hero that would never give up to adversity and that would always be there for his dear Amatista, fulfilling the promise he made to late brother….So what changed? What happened to the noble young man he once was?_

* * *

"The old man like you asked, Grandpa". The blue-eyed bandit said, dropping Don to the ground inside the biggest tent in the camp.

In front of him, an old man sat in the shadows, he took a deep breath from an oxygen tank. "Leave us, Reinaldo".

Reinaldo vowed to his grandfather and took his men with him, leaving Don alone with the boss of the White Moon tribe.

Don was still confused; how did they know his name. He couldn't make up the man's face but his voice sent chills to his spine, it was as if his past had finally caught up to him and he was about to pay for all his sins.

The old man rolled over Don's shield which landed to show the burning windmill emblem on it. "Hehehe. To think I would find you here, after all these years. Playing hero in the woods. When was the last time you were home? Last I heard…it's been too long".

The voice…the more he heard the more frightened Don got, his eyes were wide and cold sweat ran on his neck. He lifted his sight, now noticing the mirror shield behind the old man.

The wheelchair moved forward towards the light and Don could clearly see the face of the White Moon bandit lord.

"All these years running from your past. But I told you…You can't escape from who you are, Cervantes".

"Ro…Roberto".

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Author's note:
> 
> Thank you all for reading. Sorry, it took this long, but I finally got a new chapter ready.
> 
> For a bit of lore, Roberto Celestino and Reinaldo Celestino are based on the Knight of Mirrors and his fake nose squire from Don Quixote. The knight of mirrors was also known as the knight of the white moon, hence the name of his bandit tribe.
> 
> The meaning of Rocinante's name is actually the real explanation of Don Quixote's horse name. The name is actually a pun, a rocin is both an old, skinny, and sick workhorse and a moron. Don Quixote put the word "ante" on the name which roughly translates to "before" or "prior", the problem is that he used it as a suffix, and when you do that "ante" refers to someone that does an action, as a result, Don Quixote wanted to say that the horse was a former rocin and now a noble steed but ended up calling it "He who does a moronic thing". I like to think that Spanish is a dead language in Remnant, which is why Grandpa Cervantes got the meaning wrong and so did Miguel and Don.
> 
> Thanks for reading and like always, any feedback is highly appreciated it.


	13. The Devil's Cantata

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> While Jaune puts in place his escape plan, Don and Roberto remember the ghosts of their past.

**Chapter XIII**

**The Devil's Cantata**

Past midnight, the bandit camp was still raging with drinking and celebration. Some of the tribe's members were passed out drunk on the ground but there were still too many active. The bandits were rejoiced with their hunt of the day, money was coming their way and they couldn't wait to receive their pay, no matter how blood tainted it was.

The same joy wasn't shared by their terrified prisoners. From the faunus filled cages could be heard the whimpers of scared villagers. Innocent men, women, and children were taken away from their homes and about to be sold as slaves.

Every minute that passed, Jaune heard more and more cries. It filled him with frustration. These innocent people were suffering, their captors were drinking to their horrible deed, his mentor was taken away from him and he was now sitting there, tied, beaten, unable to lift a finger to protect the people that needed him. For a while, he wondered if his mentor was right. Maybe he was just a stupid kid playing hero. These people needed someone brave and strong that could stand for them. They needed someone like Ruby, a true hero that inspired everyone to be better and rise against adversity. She always inspired him, he admired her dearly. Had she been there, all these people could have rested assured that they would be saved because Ruby would never give up until they were all free, she always strived to do what was right.

Sadly, these people didn't have Ruby around, no, they were stuck with Jaune. The boy who faked his way into Beacon Academy, the selfish idiot who put Weiss in danger and mistreated Pyrrha when she just wanted to help him. Maybe Don was right, maybe these people didn't need Jaune…But they had him, and he was not going to fail them.

In his journey, Jaune had learned from his mistakes, he had a dream and a goal. These people didn't need Jaune the self-doubting kid, they needed Jaune the huntsman, the hero who would fight for them. Ruby would give it her all to save these innocent people, and so would he.

Jaune took a look at his surroundings again, trying to find a way out of his prison. Climbing out would be impossible, but the floor was simply dirt, digging his way out was an option but the dirt was tough and his hands were tied, it would have taken too much time and it would be harder with the guards around.

If only his mentor was there, his semblance would have been useful to distract the guards for an escape, that is if Don was willing to try, the old man had lost his will to fight.

There had to be a way out, he kept thinking of different scenarios, different options, all with their own risks and none with enough chances of success. He found himself trapped in more ways than just the cage, he was doubtful, he was tired, he was stressed, and he was alone…or so he thought.

On the other side of the cage, a young boy was sitting. The boy was sobbing, terrified. The day had started with him by his mother's side and ended with him far from home.

Jaune knew the situation was hopeless, but at the very least he could comfort the boy.

"Hey, what's your name?". Jaune asked.

The boy didn't respond, too afraid to do so. He took a quick glance at Jaune with his teary eyes. When Jaune tried to approach him, the boy immediately flinched and hid his face behind his knees.

"It's ok, it's ok. I'm not going to hurt you". Jaune awkwardly reassured the young boy.

With a bit of hesitation, the boy peeked his head once more, looking at Jaune still with his red teary eyes.

"Everything is going to be ok".

The boy's eyes showed his own frustration, "How do you know?! We can't get out and they are going to kill us, I know it, I just know it! I…I want to go home... I want my mom…". The boy shivered, he couldn't take this fear anymore, but a glimmer of hope came to him when he saw that small smile in Jaune's face.

"I know. Things are looking dark right now. But hey, the sun comes out every morning, right? I'm scared too, but things will be better, I promise. I'll keep you safe, after all, that's what huntsmen do".

"Y-You are a huntsman?".

Jaune's smile grew bigger, and the boy's tears stopped running. "Yep. The best of the best".

"But you are trapped too".

"Well, yeah, that's a good point. But I'll come up with something".

"Are you sure you are a huntsman? You really don't look like one".

"Of course, I am! Why do people keep saying that?!".

"You are wearing a hoodie. Hoodies are for dorks".

"Hoodies aren't for dorks! They are comfy!...and I had a cool jacket but my sister shrunk it in the drier".

"You sound like a dork to me".

"It's a limited-edition Pumpkin Pete hoodie! That's cool!".

"Hahahah", the boy let out a laugh. For a moment there, all his fears disappeared and a genuine feeling of joy made his heart brighter even if just for a brief moment.

A true hero brings smiles to the people around them. A smile is like a fire, once ignited it grows into others. Jaune wanted to become the type of hero who could replace frowns with smiles, that was the path of a Knight Errant, the path his mentor had taught him.

"My name is Jaune".

The boy felt more comfortable, "Cardo".

Jaune recognized the name instantly, "Wait, Cardo? I-I know your mom!".

"You do?!".

"Yes. I helped her in the village. She has…" an idea came to Jaune. "Your hands. Are they like your mom's?" He asked.

"I…Yeah. Mole hands. It's embarrassing…". Cardo answered, behind his back were tied the hands he had been bullied for all his life.

Jaune's eyes flared up. "No, they are perfect. Cardo, listen to me. I made a promise to your mom, that I would get you out of here, but I need your help. If we work together, we can save all the villagers. You will see your mom again. What do you say?".

Cardo was hesitant, but his fear had diminished and a spark of hope had returned to his heart. "How can I help?".

* * *

" _Gulp, gulp,_ Ahh! That's a good wine…Sure you don't want a drink?". Roberto asked before taking a bite from a turkey leg.

Don couldn't look at him in the eyes. He was still in shock. Of all people, he never thought he would see his former trainer and rival again, let alone this far from home and as the leader of a bandit tribe.

What happened to the noble Roberto? Don couldn't even recognize him.

"Uh…No…I'm good".

"Meh, your loss. But I guess you are used to being a loser, eh, Cervantes?".

Don had no pride at this point and still, that comment stung. But his will to fight was extinguished, and his shame overpowered him.

"To think I would find you this far away from home. Who's the kid? Son? Grandson? Nah, who would be crazy enough to date you, haha. So?

"He…He's my squire" Don answered shamefully, fully aware of how stupid it made him sound.

"Hahahahahah! A knight until the end!" Roberto said mockingly.

Don was shaking, the laugh of his ghosts felt like stab wounds all around his body. "How…how did you know?...about what I did".

Roberto finished his drink and signaled one of his bandits to bring him some more. "I still got some contacts in Castañuela. Honestly, when I heard you were gone, I assumed you got yourself killed poking a nest of wasps or doing some other dumb shit like that. Then I heard what you did…and I honestly couldn't believe you'll be that pathetic".

Don didn't respond, his eyes simply drifted back at the burning windmill on his shield.

"How long has it been? Four, five years?".

"Six". Don responded.

Roberto finally got his wine and drank it completely in one swing. "Ah…That's a long time running from your past. Guess Miguel should have spent less time training you to run and more time teaching you not to be a disgraceful moron".

Don immediately stood up; his pride might have been gone but his love for his brother would never die. The mere mention of Miguel enraged him and he rushed to strike Roberto, but he was far too slow. A bandit quickly beat him with a rifle, making him fall to the ground once more.

"Hahaha. So, there IS still a bit of fire in you. Good to know".

Don spat some blood, struggling to recover. It was hopeless. His ghosts had reached him and there was no running from them anymore.

"Brothers, you are pathetic. Unbelievable".

Don's dirt-covered face couldn't hide his anger. He might not have liked Roberto before but he respected the man. He was noble, he was passionate. A proud huntsman. What happened to him?

* * *

" _The brave knight heard stories of the horrifying beast. The Nuckelavee was a Grimm like no other. A bringer of death and a collector of trophies. After every battle, the beast would end with the weapons of its victims piercing its back…and filled it with pride. Every blade was a reminder of the souls it had destroyed."_

_The kids around Don were getting goosebumps as he kept reading his book._

" _The Nuckelavee was fear itself, but its existence had brought too much death and suffering to innocent people. Someone had to do something. And that someone was the knight and his brave companions"._

" _The huntsmen!" a kid said._

" _That's right! The four huntsmen. The hopeful reaper, the brave knight, the strong barbarian and the serene ninja. They searched for the beast for days, and when they finally found it…"._

" _Hey, Dominique. It's closing time"._

" _Awwww"._

" _Boss, I was getting to the good part!"._

_The book store manager knew how much the kids enjoyed sitting around listening to Don's stories, normally she just let him have his fun if he had done his job, but the man tended to lose track of time as he got lost in his fantasy worlds._

" _You can continue tomorrow. Don. I gotta go home and so do you. Come on, kids, the store is closed"._

" _Awww. Not fair". The kids grunted in disappointment._

_This was a typical day at Castañuela. Don had gotten a nice comfortable job at the book store he had spent his childhood in. Every morning after leaving his beloved niece in school, he headed to work, dusted off some books, helped new customers, and lost himself in yet another fantasy story. He knew every heroic tale living in the pages of that book store and was always eager to dive into the new ones they would get every now and then._

_After a long day at work, Don tended to head to the market, he wasn't much of a cook but he tried to give his niece a healthy meal everyday…and a tiny sweet treat, of course, he wasn't a monster._

" _I'm home!"._

" _Uncle Don!" it filled his heart with so much joy hearing those tiny footsteps running down the stairs to greet him. "What did you get me?"._

" _Is that a way to greet your dear uncle?"._

"… _.So…"._

" _Muffins"._

" _Yay!"._

_Amatista was just 8 years old but from a young age, she was Don's kitchen assistant. She had talent; Don couldn't deny that. Their beef stew was delicious, but no matter how much he tried, Don just couldn't get Margarita's recipe right._

_After supper, it was time for a nice bath and then homework._

" _And then you carry the 1"._

" _But that's not right, uncle Don"._

" _Sure, it is"._

" _No. My teacher says it's done like this"._

" _But the result is the same!"._

" _No. Yours is wrong"._

" _When did you become so smart?! Come here" Amatista hated being tickled but Don just loved to make her a bit mad._

" _Stop, haha. It's not my fault you are a dummy"._

" _Hey, as long as you are smarter than me, everything is right in the world, haha". Don replied, before kissing her forehead._

_Don loved Amatista as if she was his own daughter. She was his treasure._

" _I think we are done here"._

" _Oh, are you going to train tonight?". The little girl asked._

_Don was taken aback for a moment, his eyes locking on his sword and shield leaning against a wall next to the door that leads to the backyard. He saw the weapon his brother had given him with nostalgia. The burning windmill that he himself drew to remember what he was fighting for. Don had made a promise to his dear brother to always protect his niece, to always be by her side. It was a promise he was determined to keep…yet at the same time._

" _Uncle Don?"._

" _Uh…Oh, hehe. It's getting late, maybe another time"._

" _But it's so cool!"._

" _It's the coolest! But you have school tomorrow and I know how cranky you get, haha"._

" _It's not fair, bedtime is for babies"._

" _Hey! Bedtime is great! It means it's also storytime!"._

_Amatista's eye glowed bright like a star, "Gasp. The Knight Princess?!"._

" _We are getting close to the end of book 3. Why don't you go get ready? I'll be up in a moment"._

" _Ok! Yay! Storytime!" Amatista ran upstairs with joy in her steps as each got her closer to her favorite book._

_Don just looked at her with love in his eyes. He loved his niece…then why did it felt like something was missing?_

_After turning off the lights in the house, he decided to check the mail before heading upstairs for storytime. That was when a grim reminder pained his heart. Between the bills and pamphlets, there was a letter. "Dominique Cervantes, Letter of Recommendation," it said._

_Don loved his niece, but he would be lying if he had said he was happy. He had a mission and a promise to keep but he still felt trapped. His dream to become a huntsman drifted farther away from his grasp with every minute he spent in this boring town working a boring job in the same boring routine._

_There was something missing in Don's life. That adventure he always wanted to experience. That unfulfilled dream he so desperately wanted to make true. He wanted to become a hero, he wanted to be a true huntsman and become the main character of his own story!_

" _I'm ready, uncle Don!"._

… _But the reality of things was….that he lost his chance._

_Don opened a drawer in his desk and put the Huntsmen Academy letter with the other ones he received annually. A reminder of his dead dream he just couldn't bury._

" _Uncle Don!"._

" _I'm coming"._

* * *

As the night grew late, the guards began to become clumsier. Jaune kept noticing how the number of rounds was starting to decrease. The guards that didn't fall asleep were being grabbed by their friends for a couple of drinks that soon became far too many. If they wanted to act, they needed to do it now.

"Ok, go". Jaune whispered.

He and Cardo managed to crawl to one another and push their backs against each other. Jaune was right, those mole claws were perfect, they were sharp and sturdy. It was hard to figure out where the rope was but Cardo quickly began to cut through Jaune's bonds.

"Ow".

"Sorry!".

" _Shh._ It's ok, just hurry up and keep it…wait", voices were approaching their cell. "Stop, stop! Move back, quickly!". Jaune instructed and the two quickly separated once again to avoid suspicion from their captors.

Jaune was praying for the guards to not have noticed and for them to move fast, every second counted and for their plan to work, they needed the night sky as dark as possible.

Cardo was starting to shake nervously as the bandits got closer, but Jaune whispered at him reassuring him that everything would be ok.

To his surprise, Jaune noticed that the bandits weren't actually guards, it was just a few drunks laughing and cheering, one of them he recognized as the blue-eyed bandit who took Don away from him.

"I'm just saying, wine is for rich assholes! Why doesn't this camp have more beer?!" a female bandit said, barely being able to walk.

"Not this again. Who cares!? It's booze!" Reinaldo answered before emptying his glass and tossing it on the floor. "See? You drink it and get drunk, who gives a crap?!".

"I do! Why would I want to pretend to be a fancy Atlasian snub?! Plus, that garbage is so soft. Nah, Vacuan Ale! Now that's the stuff!".

Their other drinking buddy stepped in, "We aren't getting that. Grandpa is one of those fancy type dorks, haha. But don't worry. When the old geezer dies, Reinaldo will rule this place and we won't have to deal withAHH!".

The bandit couldn't finish his sentence before Reinaldo slammed him against a cell and started to punch his face repeatedly.

"Reinaldo! Stop!" the female bandit pleaded, barely managing to pull the angered man, she stopped him and their companion slid to the ground, Reinaldo kicked him in the face until blood came out of his nose.

"Who the hell you think you are?! Don't you DARE speak of my grandfather like that!" Reinaldo grabbed the man by the collar, "The day he dies, you'll be the first one I'm going to hang for daring to DISRESPECT him! You hear me?!".

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry!".

As Reinaldo was getting ready to deliver another punch, his attention was caught by the prisoner in front of him. He recognized Jaune as the guy who tried to defend Don. He let go of the bandit's collar and dropped him to the ground before leaning against the cell.

"You, blonde guy". Reinaldo asked. Jaune didn't answer, just gave stared at him waiting to see if he would just leave, but Reinaldo was insistent.

"You tried to defend Cervantes. Is he something to you?".

Jaune was surprised by the question. "I..".

"Give me an answer" Reinaldo demanded in a serious but calm tone. Jaune realized that unless he did as told, the bandits would make the situation worse for them. If his plan was going to work, he had to humor him to avoid any conflict.

"He is my mentor" Jaune answered.

Reinaldo got a big smile on his face, "You are his squire, aren't you?".

Jaune wasn't expecting that response at all.

Reinaldo continued, "That's how grandpa used to call me when he trained me. A knight in shining armor and his squire. Haha. Then you must understand why I did this".

Jaune looked back at the beaten bandit, it was horrifying how prompt to violence Reinaldo was…but at the same time, Jaune felt he did understand where the man was coming from.

"I-I think so. You look up to your grandfather, of course hearing others disrespect him would make you mad. I mean, if your mentor was there for you, of course, you'll be there for him as well".

Reinaldo's aggressive smile became a bit calmer and softer, "You do get it. I'm glad. Name is Reinaldo".

"Jaune".

"It's something special, don't you think? The bond of mentor and mentee. Of course, I admire my grandfather, he was there in my darkest times and helped me grow as a man".

"Sometimes you need help to go through difficulties, and having someone there having your back and believing you can build a better future…yeah…You are right, it is something special". Jaune answered. It was odd. Reinaldo was a cruel criminal yet Jaune felt such an odd feeling of kinship with him, a sentiment Reinaldo shared as well.

"Then again, sometimes you feel like you are the adult and the old fart is the kid, haha".

"Right?! I once got beaten up because Don didn't want to pay for milk".

"Hahaha! Why are they so cheap!? I once got attacked by a swarm of bees because the old man thinks honey is a scam!".

Jaune and Reinaldo shared a laugh. It was strange, but it felt comfortable.

After a small pause, Jaune's smile vanished as he once again came back to the grim reality of the situation.

"Can I ask you something?...Is this really the future your grandfather wants for you?".

Reinaldo kept his smile but it didn't feel joyful anymore, "Who knows what the old man is thinking. I just follow his lead".

"You can't seriously think this right. Look around, these people are suffering!".

Reinaldo kicked the cell hard, startling Jaune and Cardo inside. "….Do you know the history between Cervantes and my Grandfather?".

Jaune didn't respond, but his face said it all. He looked up to Don but the truth was that he barely knew anything about him. And Reinaldo quickly picked up on that.

"Oh really? Guess you can't tell what's in your mentor's mind either. Grandpa has very few good things to say about him. Long story short, they are old rivals from their hometown…I wonder what that makes you and me".

Reinaldo stepped back and helped his beaten comrade stand up; the female bandit quickly stepped in to help.

"My grandfather has plenty of demons haunting him. I want to help him overcome them before it's too late…I'm sure you can relate. Squire". With those words, Reinaldo and his bandits walked away, leaving Jaune reflecting for a bit, but he didn't have much time to dwell in his thoughts, he needed to act.

"Ok, now" he instructed Cardo and the two resumed their escape plan.

* * *

_As the years passed, that empty void in Don's heart just kept growing. The fantasy books he held so dear became his only escape from that feeling of imprisonment he had._

_Tales of brave knights and great adventures, daydreaming about them gave Don a sense of relief and a bit of hope that maybe he could still make his dream come true one day. He was still young after all, well, maybe not as young anymore but he still felt in his prime._

_There were times in which he thought of simply going for it, take the time to apply for a huntsman license, and live his life free of the chains that didn't let him fly. To hell with this boring village and this boring life!...no, he couldn't do that, Amatista needed him…Amatista needed him._

" _Hey, Uncle Don" a now 13 years old Amatista walked outside to meet her uncle as he trained. He kept doing it claiming he wanted to be ready in case Grimm came to the village, in reality, it was part of his escapist fantasy, he still held that hope, and taking his sword and shield felt liberating._

_Amatista always thought it was cool, but the older she got, she mainly was glad her uncle was doing some exercise rather than spending all day reading and eating._

" _Yeah? What's wrong?"._

" _Nothing, it's just…I just found these in your desk". In Amatista's hands were the letters, all those tempting letters Don just couldn't get himself to throw away._

_He was stunned for a moment like a kid who just got found out by his mother. "Oh…those. It's nothing, sweetie"._

" _Are you sure?". She pressed on._

_Don was starting to get nervous. "Yeah, they really are just junk mail nothing else"._

" _You get one yearly…You aren't even attending Combat School"._

" _Roberto must have forgotten to take me off the list. I'm telling you, it's not a big deal"._

" _Then we should tell him so that he stops sending them"._

" _No!" Don's response startled Amatista a little. Don immediately regretted his reaction..but those letters. It was silly, but they were the last sliver of hope he had left of his now-defunct ambition._

" _It-it's no problem, I don't want to bother him with something lik…"._

" _Are you…planning on becoming a huntsman?" Amatista asked._

_Don was shocked by the question, he certainly had been thinking about it, but, how could he? He had his niece to take care of, he couldn't just take the exam. "I…no, not really, but please don't throw them away, I'll talk to Roberto, I promise"._

" _Uncle Don, if this is what you want, then why haven't you taken the exam? You use that sword every now and then, I'm sure you'll do great. I mean, it's not like you'll lose anything, right? Just take the exam, get a license, and come back home". Amatista's words were kind and her heart was in the right place, but she sadly wasn't getting it._

_It wasn't a matter of getting the title, Don wanted to live a life of adventure, a huntsman license was meaningless if he still had to stay in this gods forsaken town…taking care of his niece._

" _It's…complicated, sweetie"._

_Amatista was a gentle soul, she just didn't understand how hard her words could hit her dear uncle, "It doesn't hurt to try, I mean, you are not getting any younger"._

_She was trying to encourage him…Don didn't take it as such. It was true, the clock was ticking, every day that passed his dream drifted farther away from his grasp, but he couldn't get out of this cage._

" _Hey, should we make pancakes for dinner?...uncle Don?"._

" _Eh…yeah, sure"._

_Was it a lost cause? Was it really impossible to reach the stars? Were the bars in his cage that unbreakable? …No. There had to be hope, any hope…and hope arrived._

_It was a few months after that night. The book store had to close early and with Amatista at school, Don had the day for himself and his fantasy novels. But the calm day of peace and quiet took an unexpected turn._

" _Grimm!"._

_They had arrived, the beasts from the woods. The sound of roars and screams of innocent villagers sent the town of Castañuela into a panic._

_Grimm attacks weren't uncommon but they were still a threat to the daily life beyond the Kingdom's walls._

_What sounded like a nightmare to anyone else, was a conflicting call for Don. On the one hand, there were innocent people in danger, for what he knew his niece could be in peril…on the other hand, Grimm meant one thing, adventure!_

_Of course, he was worried, of course, he was taking the threat seriously. But when Don took his sword and his shield and ran towards the Grimm horde, he couldn't help but smile in anticipation. His heart was rising, adrenaline ran through his veins. He had been feeling miserable for a long time now and finally, he got a call to thrills and heroism._

" _Help me!"._

" _Eat that! You furry sack of crap!" He shouted as his blade sliced a Beowolf's head, he quickly blocked a strike from another Grimm and stabbed it in a shift move._

" _Thank you!"._

" _A day in the life of a hero! Run!", Don was having so much fun while he fought the Grimm horde._

_The creatures were being driven back by Roberto and his students. "Don't break formation! Push them out of our town!". The knight with his mirror shield proved why he was in charge of Castañuela's training camp. He used every bit of experience he gathered over the years to lead his students with precision. The Grimm were pushed to the open fields outside of the town, where the huntsmen in-training were free to show their skills and slay them._

" _Do not lower your guard! Fight until they are all gon…"._

" _Excuse me, coming through!". Don said as he rushed past Roberto, taking down an Ursa with a shield bash and decapitating it._

" _Cervantes?!"_

" _Roberto! How've you been? You are getting fat"._

" _Get back to town, we'll handle this!"._

" _Nah! I'll give you hand, it's no problem"._

" _This is serious, you moron!" Roberto slammed an Alpha Beowolf and crushed its head with his shield, he then blocked a rolling Boarbatusk that was sent flying as soon as it met Roberto's semblance._

" _I won't say it aga…Cervantes!"._

" _Can't hear you! Too busy being a badass! Sorry_ _~". Don just winked at Roberto and ran to partake in the action. He felt freer than he had in years._

" _Ahhh! I hate that stupid idiot!" Another skull crushed by Roberto's shield; this one was a bit therapeutic though._

_His spear flew like the wind, his battle spirit raged like it hadn't in years. The Grimm horde was a nightmare yet to Don it was a much-needed breath of fresh air._

" _I feel alive! HA!" Another Grimm met his spear and went down, Don's smile was the last thing that creature ever saw._

_The battle was looking well for a moment, the number of Grimm dwelled and the inexperienced students could finally catch a break. They were exhausted and injured but they drew the Grimm wave back…the first one that is._

" _Why are you all sitting?!"._

" _Master…we just…need a moment"._

" _Are you telling me this is all the endurance you have?! Bunch of worthless dirtbags!"._

" _We won, the Grimm are dead, what's the big deal?!"._

_Roberto looked at his students in anger, "If you lower your guard, you'll be dead meat! Stand upright now before…" The trees nearby began to shake violently, enough to send shivers to every one of Roberto's students. They didn't understand, the battle was not over until the last Grimm was gone._

"… _Stand up…"._

" _Master"._

" _Stand up!"_

" _Grrrraaaaa!"._

_Don was still euphoric…but that roar, it was enough to make him shake and lose his smile._

_The Grimm wave was just the beginning, a larger swarm approached, led by the biggest Death Stalker Castañula had seen._

" _Uhhhh…that's not good"._

" _Stand up and form up!" Roberto instructed his students, but the confidence they showed earlier was long gone. The students were tired, weakened, and terrified. Roberto could see the terror in their eyes._

" _We are huntsmen! This is our duty! Stand up and fight!". It was futile, the students were panicking, some even tried to run away, but the Lancers arrived first._

" _Take cover!"._

_The Lancers attacked the panicking students, some managed to fend them off, others weren't so lucky. Roberto struggled to calm down his students and protect them._

" _Form up! Form up!"_

" _Ahhh!" A student's yell caught Roberto's attention, a Lancer's stinger had stabbed his leg and was pulling him to the sky._

" _No!"._

" _GIVE HIM BACK!" Don's spear flew like a rocket, piercing the Lancer and freeing the student, Roberto rushed to his aid and barely managed to catch him before he hit the ground._

" _Is the boy ok?"_

" _Not his leg. But he is alive…thank you", Roberto said._

" _No problem, hehe, take him to safety"._

" _They are still swarming us; we aren't organized and are outnumbered!"._

" _I know right?! This is awesome! Get moving! Your hero will proteAHHHH!" Don was immediately hit by a Boarbatusk and rolled downhill, right towards the bulk of the Grimm swarm._

" _Ouch. Stupid rolling ba…..con"._

_Cold sweat ran down Don's neck, he was in the eye of the storm. The Grimm swarm ran and crawled around him…but that's because he had become the queen's prey._

" _Ah hehe, hey, how is it going?". Don said awkwardly. He couldn't do much at the sight of the massive Death Stalker approaching him._

_He tried to reach for his spear, but the weapon had landed downhill out of his reach and the imponent creature was approaching fast._

_In a desperate attempt, Don tried to rush towards his spear, the Death Stalker rapidly running towards its prey._

" _Screeeeeccchhhhh!"._

_Don managed to get a hold of his spear, but it was far too late, the Death Stalker's stinger was about to impale him. At that moment, Don's mind went straight to his beloved niece, her face was everything he could think of…was that really the last time he would see her?_

_A slash of steel as fast as a flash of light hooked the stinger and pulled away from its victim._

_As the Death Stalker pulled its stinger back, it immediately tried to cut the hooded figure with its left pincer, but she was way too fast. The hooded huntress leaped over the pincer, parring a second strike with her scythes. As the creature tried to cut her in half with both pincers at once, the hooded huntress leaped and evaded the strike. As if dancing, she evaded a stab from the stinger and immediately rushed towards the beast, hooking herself to the stinger which was lifted with speed._

_As she flew in the sky, her hood pulled back, revealing beautiful dark hair, and a mysterious skull mask. The hooded huntress landed straight on the Death Stalker's head, slashing its eyes and blinding the creature._

" _Screeeeecccchhhh!". The beast screeched in pain._

_The hooded huntress jumped back on the ground as the beast wailed and shook wildly._

_The Grimm horde came to its queen's aid, Lancer stingers flew towards the hooded huntress, but she simply evaded them, and cut them. Firing shots of gravity dust, no Grimm could go near her._

_She threw one of her scythes at a Lancer and used the gravity dust on the other to fly towards the bug Grimm, slashing it upon arrival, and with swiftness she repeated the move, jumping from Lancer to Lancer until none were left._

_From the distance, Roberto and his students looked in disbelief how in a matter of seconds, the Lancer swarm was taken down as slashes shined and dust was fired until the sky was clear and only the ground Grimm remained._

_The hooded huntress landed and with a shift move, she took her stance and got ready for the battle. She was growing tired though, and the creatures' numbers were still too high._

_As the Grimm rushed towards her, she fired some shots and slashed the Beowolves that launched themselves at high speed. Her agility was unparalleled, she flipped and slashed and tore apart every beast foolish enough to cross her._

_Eventually, the swarm began to prove too much for her. She managed to kill a couple of Ursa before detecting an Ursa Mayor coming right behind her, she was about to slice its head off when the creature's claws met a shield._

" _Would you like some help?". Don said with a smile, barely managing to hold the beast._

_The hooded huntress immediately shot the beast in the head. "Sure, why not?"._

_Don's smile just grew bigger and brighter._

_The hooded huntress and the dreamer knight stood back to back against the Grimm horde, slashing, blocking stabbing as many as they could._

" _Not bad"._

" _Really?! I mean…yeah, you aren't half bad eiTHER!". A scythe flew right in front of Don's face and straight between the eyes of a Grimm before returning to the huntress's hand._

" _Try to focus, handsome"._

"… _would you marry me?"._

" _No, but this is a hell of a first date, buddy, I'll give you that!". The hooded huntress rushed and jumped, using Don's shoulder to boost herself, she cut four Grimm in half as she landed._

_Don couldn't believe his eyes. This woman…she was incredible._

_His bewitchment had to wait though; the queen Death Stalker had returned. The blind beast was striking wildly, killing many of its allies in its frenzy._

" _That's…"_

" _If you want to run…"._

" _AWESOME!"._

_The hooded huntress was a bit shocked, but she liked that attitude, it wasn't every day that she got to see a crazy guy who got a big smile as a massive beast approached. "Huh. Guess that's a good way to die"._

_The two got ready to strike the beast when suddenly, the swarm around them began to vanish._

" _Keep pushing!"._

" _Roberto!"._

_Roberto and his remaining students were finally back in action. The students were inspired by the reaper's incredible performance. If she was fighting that hard to protect their village, they couldn't do less._

_The horde's numbers decreased, until only a few Grimm and the queen stood._

_The hooded huntress rushed towards the beast. The creature's wild strikes were hard to evade, but she managed to predict all its moves with the use of her semblance._

" _We got to stop it!"._

" _Shield guy! Handsome! Go for its legs!"._

" _On it!". Roberto said._

"… _She thinks I'm handsome?"._

" _Cervantes!"._

" _Right, giant angry monster, on it!"._

_As the reaper faced the Death Stalker, she managed to hook her scythe on one of its arms, firing a couple of rounds to weaken it and slicing it right off._

" _Screeeeeechhhh"._

_As the hooded huntress took down the pincers, Don and Roberto charged against its legs. Don slashed them off one by one, while Roberto used his full strength to charge through the beast's legs._

_The hooded huntress quickly managed to cut off the second pincer, and as her two allies brough the creature down, she climbed on top of it and began to slash its head. The hide was too thick for her to do more than scratch it…and then she got an idea._

_With incredible precision, she threw one of her scythes right at the beast's stinger, using the other one to fly towards the beast's tail. As soon as she reached the handle, she threw her scythe back at the creature's head, sticking it in its hide._

_Don and Roberto saw in awe as the hooded huntress swung with the tail until the right moment and activated the gravity dust in her scythes, forcing the stinger down and stabbing the beast with its own tail._

" _Screeeeeee…."._

_As the dust settled, only the hooded huntress stood, her skull scythes in hand._

_Roberto could barely speak, "You…You are the Grimm Reaper"._

_Maria Calavera took off her skull mask, showing her beautiful face and those gorgeous Silver Eyes that immediately stole Don's heart._

"… _Wow…" he said, with the dumbest smile he ever had._

_That night, Don invited Maria for dinner at his home. She didn't use to accept invitations like that one, but the guy seemed harmless enough and she could really use a warm homemade meal._

" _And here you go, my very own Cervantes Sangria…trademarked"._

" _Let's see if it lives up to expectation….mhm, not bad, guess you are better with booze than Grimm"._

" _I'm the best at both! Thank you very much"._

" _No offense, ballerina, but you really need to work on your footwork. You got spaghetti legs, haha"._

" _Oh really, but tell me, do you like pastAHHH!"._

_Amatista was not having any of her uncle's attempts at flirting._

" _My ear! Let go, please! Mercy! Mercy!"._

" _You deserve that"._

_Maria chuckled and took another sip of her sangria, "You really do. Work on your legs, then on your game, handsome"._

_The group shared a laugh, it wasn't common for Don to bring visits, but Amatista and Maria got along really easily. Don hadn't been so happy in months, and his niece noticed. Maria was someone Don admired instantly, her strength, her kindness, her beauty, she was a true hero and Don saw that the moment he laid eyes on her for the first time. She was exactly the kind of hero he would read about in his books; it was as if she was ripped straight out of those pages._

" _So, what brings you here?"._

_Maria finished her glass, enjoying every single drop of the sangria, "Ah, that hit the spot. I'm just passing by. I've been traveling across the Kingdoms trying to help out as much as I can"._

" _You are a wandering huntress!? That's so amazing!" Don couldn't hide his excitement._

" _I guess you can call me that"._

" _Well I really thank you for what you did today. You saved the village and my uncle; I'll always be in debt to you"._

_Maria chuckled, it wasn't just the alcohol, she was genuinely enjoying herself, it had been a long time since she last sat down and had a happy family meal. "You don't owe me anything. It's a day in the life of a huntress. You know what I mean, right?"._

_Don was taken aback for a moment, realizing what was happening, "Oh, of course. Huntsmen and Huntresses dedicate their lives to save the people of Remnant! Our heroic deeds are everything that stands between the innocent and a gruesome death!", he said, trying really hard to impress his guest._

" _Spoken like a true fanboy. Haha. No, uncle Don is not a huntsman"._

" _Amatista!" Don's eyes became teary, his niece didn't need to call him out like that._

" _Oh really? Gotta say, your moves fooled me back then"._

" _Re…Really?" He felt such warmth in his heart. To hear her say that, it meant way more to him than Maria realized._

" _Yeah. You are just a bit of a dumbass, but I've met worse. You know how to fight, seem to like huntsmanship. Ever wanted to get a license?"._

_Don was silent for a moment, "I…I did, at some point. But guess it's too late for me"._

" _I don't see why. You are still young; the village could use some good huntsmen around. It's never too late to make a dream come true"._

" _It's…not that simple"._

_Don's reply changed the mood of the room, Maria could feel it in his voice, that regret and doubt. "Well, you do you. I don't blame you either. It's not an easy profession…it demands plenty of sacrifices"._

_Don noticed the sorrow in Maria's voice. He knew nothing about it and still, he felt like he could relate with her struggles. He too had experienced the depths of sorrow, but if someone as amazing as Maria could rise up, maybe he could try too?...could he though?_

" _Oh! The casserole is ready!". Amatista broke the awkward silence and both Don and Maria felt the tension slowly fading._

" _Oh, you are going to love this. Amatista and I have been trying to figure out her mom's secret recipe. Oh, that beef stew was a thing of heaven!"._

" _It's not beef stew", Amatista replied, much to her uncle's surprise._

" _What do you mean?"._

" _I gave up"._

" _What?! Cervantes don't give up, young lady!". Don was offended by that response. Not that his niece took him that seriously._

" _I decided to change my goal. Instead of trying to match mom, I decided to make an even better dish". Amatista put down a rabbit casserole, the aroma of the meal captivated Don and Maria, they had never smelled something as delicious in their lives._

" _So?"._

" _This…This is…" Don couldn't find words._

" _Amazing!" Maria couldn't stop eating, her eyes teary, she almost choked with how fast she was eating._

" _Hahaha. Guess it was a success!"._

_Cervantes didn't give up, they adapted. Amatista was without a doubt her father's daughter…Don, on the other hand, was starting to get astray from his brother's path._

* * *

"Come on, Come on…There" Jaune finally got his hands free, he quickly untied Cardo's and the two moved on with their plan.

"Ok, calm down. Here is what we'll do. Dig, run to the cavern. I dropped a flare gun somewhere there. I need you to find it, get to the river and fire it. Hide and wait for the guards, they'll need your help to find this place. Do you understand?".

Cardo was scared, but a quick look at Jaune's eye gave him the confidence to keep going. "Yes".

"Good. Hurry, I'll make a distraction, get the guards here as soon as possible, I'll keep them busy".

With that Cardo quickly followed Jaune's instructions, using his mole claws, he managed to quickly dig a small hole and crawl under the cell, running away free. Jaune sat on the hole with his hands on his back.

It took about fifteen minutes until a patrolling bandit passed in front of Jaune's cell.

"Hey! Where did the other go?!".

"Other? I don't know what you are talking about" Jaune responded with a silly smirk and an innocent whistle.

"No. There was another one here!".

"Oh, yeah, the old man, but you guys took him".

"Don't mess with me!".

"I'm not messing with you. I'm just here. Hey, is there a bathroom? I really need to go".

The guard was getting annoyed, "There was another one here!".

"Look, I don't know what to tell you. I got this cell for myself, I honestly thought that you guys liked me".

The guard had enough of dumb chatting, he opened the cell to investigate himself. "Where is the other one?!".

"Ohhhh, the other one. I got him right HERE!" A sucker punch brought the bandit to the ground. Jaune took his keys and locked him inside the cell before running away.

Now free, Jaune was determined to rescue his mentor. His plan was to sneak around the camp to find Don, but he had to ditch the sneaking part when the bandit stood up faster than he expected.

"Prisoner out! Prisoner out!".

Many bandits were blackout drunk, but this didn't make things easier for Jaune. As he ran across the camp, bandits began to show up and attack him.

"Over here!" One yelled before Jaune tackled him to the ground and continued running.

Gunshots and blades were in his patch. The imprisoned faunus all woke up from the commotion to see how a young man ran between cells and tents to avoid recapture.

"Don, where are you?!".

"End of the line, pal!" A bandit aimed a rifle at him, but Jaune couldn't stop his legs even if he wanted to. He ended up crashing on her and bringing both down.

"Ow, my head!". Jaune said before realizing he had landed on top of the pretty bandit lady.

"Bonnie!?" A man said.

"Clyde!".

"It's not what it looks like!".

"I'LL KILL YOU!".

"I'm so sorry, ma'am!" Jaune stood quickly, barely avoiding the hammer of jealousy that was about to smash his head.

"Don! Where are you!".

Jaune continued running, causing mayhem everywhere he went. Going through tents, making things fall. Dropping barrels of water and wine. He caused as much chaos as possible in his path to rescue his mentor. Stealth was out of the window…good. Jaune was now drawing as much attention as he could, anything to make the bandits mad and focused on him.

His run ended though when he got a surprise hit from a shiny blue shield.

Jaune laid on his back dizzy after the shield bashed his face. He was disorientated for a moment, but a voice far too familiar was heard approaching him.

"Not bad, squire" Reinaldo said, putting his mirror shield on his back. "You got guts. Not much brain but I like your spirit". Reinaldo grabbed Jaune by the collar and headbutted him. "You are just so much fun! You want to fight your way out of here? Eh, moron? Well guess what, there is something I wanted to do the moment I met you, squire".

Jaune received another punch to the face before Reinaldo stood up. "Get him his sword".

"What?" a bandit asked.

Reinaldo quickly yelled at him with a sadistic smile on his face, "Did I stutter?! Bring him his sword!" He turned once more towards Jaune who had struggled to stand up while leaning on a cell.

"Duel me. Let's end what our mentors started. Let's see who is a squire, and who is a knight".

* * *

"Six years. I really didn't think you'll be that much of a coward. Disgraceful". Roberto took a deep breath from his oxygen tank while Don was on his knees before him.

"I gotta say, it feels good to see you like this. That stupid smile of yours finally gone. You see it now, don't you? The crude reality of this world? How all the values books tell you to hold dear are nothing but empty fantasies?" Roberto kept on breathing from his tank, only stopping to resume his conversation. "Glory, honor, heroism, nothing but fairy tales that you decided to chase like a dumb idiot. What a disgrace".

Don couldn't take it anymore. "Am I the disgrace here?! What the hell do you call this then?!". Don began to stand, his indignation forced him to, "What happened to you?! Bandits? Slaves? You used to be one of the noblest and honorable huntsman I've ever known. Bringing dishonor to all Huntsmen was a sin to you! You call ME a disgrace?! Take a look at that mirror of yours and tell me who the real DISGRACE IS!".

He finally was brought to the ground again when Roberto hit him with his cane on the side of the head.

"I don't want to hear it from you!". Roberto said, coughing a little before taking a deep breath from his tank again.

"What happened? What happened?! Let me tell you what happened. I saw the cruel unavoidable reality of this world. I saw what reality truly is. Merciless, apathetic, honorless. All of those values were taken away from me…that night".

That night….the mere mention of it sent chills to Don. The blood running from the side of his head gave him a terrifying reminder…of the night a dream became a nightmare.

* * *

_Some years passed and a now 19 years old Amatista arrived home with a big smile on her face. Don was glad of seeing her like that, he was of course a bit uncomfortable with her getting a boyfriend, but Santiago was a good kid from a nice kind family. Still, it was his fatherly duty to scare the little brat just in case. Not that it ever worked of course._

" _I'm home, Uncle Don!"._

" _Amatista! My princess, my treasure…and you…"._

" _Hey, Mr. Cervantes"._

" _Hey, Mr. Cervantes. Is that a way to address me?! Boy!"._

_Amatista of course was annoyed, "He called you Mr, how else do you want him to call you?"._

" _How about, Sir General Lord Cervantes for a start?"._

" _Understood, Sir General Lord Cervantes!". Santiago answered while saluting. He then let out a chuckle, the lad was already used to Don's antics and he found it so much fun._

" _Amatistaaaaa!" Don said with watery eyes._

" _Oh, no! Don't come in crying because you lost again.". Amatista answered._

_Don's frustration was short-lived though when the beautiful voice of his perfect woman came through the door._

" _Defeated by a younger model. Come on, Donny, I expected just a bit more from you". Maria said, taking off her mask to greet her old friend._

" _My beautiful orchid! You grace me with your gorgeous presence!"._

" _It's good to see you too, dumbass"._

_Maria had made a habit of stopping by Don and Amatista's home every time she was around, it wasn't often though, her duty as a huntress had her traveling the entire world most of the time. She had very few home bases, sort of speak, but every time she got to one, she felt at peace. Nowhere did she feel more at home than at that tiny house in Castañuela._

_At dinner time, Don got to do his favorite thing, share a sangria with the most beautiful woman he had ever met._

" _Donny, you are doing it again"._

" _I just can't help but get lost in your eyes"._

" _Well, get lost somewhere else, would you?"_

" _Sure, would you go with me?"._

" _You aren't that lucky, handsome, haha"._

_Laughter could be heard coming from the kitchen as the young couple enjoyed themselves while cooking together._

" _Aww, young love. He seems like a nice guy". Maria noted. She was being honest but a side of her only said that to annoy Don._

" _He is a good lad. Nobody is good enough for my Amastista, but he gets pretty close"._

" _Oh please, if I was a bit younger…"_

" _Don't end that sentence! My heart won't take it!"._

" _Hahaha! Relax, handsome, I'm just messing with you". Maria enjoyed teasing Don from time to time. It was her own way of showing affection for her old friend._

_Amatista and Santiago finally came out of the kitchen and the family enjoyed a delicious meal in peace, harmony, and joy._

" _Gods, that was good. I haven't had a meal like that in so long" Maria said with so much satisfaction._

" _Well, you know you are always welcome. You haven't come by in a while, aunt Maria. You are passing through?" Amatista asked, always eager to hear stories from the legendary huntress._

" _Not this time, sweetie. I came here for work"._

_Don's eyes shined like diamonds, work? A business trip was a boring thing, but to a huntress like Maria? It only meant one thing, adventure! "Work? You mean...a hunt? An important one? One full of dangers and thrills and action?!"._

" _Calm down, handsome, would you? You are gonna get a heart attack". Maria finished her drink before taking a piece of paper from her hood's pocket._

" _Yeah, a hunt, but not just any hunt. There have been reports of a very elusive target being spotted nearby. The Kingdoms have been after this thing for years, no one has been able to bring it down". She put the picture of her bounty on the table, the mere image gave goosebumps to Amatista and Santiago._

" _Wh-what is that?" Don said in awe._

_The picture was of a shade, not much could be made off of it, just the vague feathery shape of what seemed like a farmer's hat on its head, and yellow sunken eyes staring back from a dark abyss._

_Maria continued, "A Whistler. An extremely dangerous Grimm."._

_Don couldn't take his eyes away from the creature in the picture, it looked as if it was staring back at him._

" _They are extremely rare Grimm only seen in some places in Anima and Sanus so far. Only a few have been able to see one and live to tell the tale. Humanoid-bird-like creatures that use sound as a weapon. They are said to be really smart, brutal, and merciless. Some even say that they don't forget a face. Once they see a target, they'll chase it to the end of the world. Never sleeping, never resting, always chasing. Old folks say that if you encounter a Whistler, you better pray for a swift death because they never stop hunting their prey"._

_The room felt cold as Maria told the tale of the Whistler. Amatista was horrified…Don, however._

" _I'm in!"._

" _No, you are not!". Amatista answered. "Didn't you hear? That thing is super dangerous!"._

" _Exactly! It sounds aweso…I mean, far too dangerous to let Maria do this alone. I'll give her a hand, it'll be safer that way" Don argued, he did want to help…but he also wasn't about to let the chance of this adventure slip from his fingers._

_Maria and Amatista were not having it though, "I already requested Roberto and his students for help"._

" _The more the merrier! I'll go get my sword and…."_

" _No! Sit down!"._

" _Amatista…" Santiago tried to calm down Amatista, but she was far too afraid for her uncles' safety._

" _Uncle Don, this is not a game. Leave this to the professionals"._

" _I've fought Grimm before. I'm not some useless idiot and if I can do some good, what's the problem?"._

" _The problem is that you just want to play huntsman in the woods not knowing what you are going against. You are just going to get yourself killed!". Amatista was not going to sit around and let her only family die in vain. "Promise me you won't go"._

" _I used to be a huntsman in-training, I've defended this town before, why is it wrong that I want to do it again?!"._

" _Amatista is right" Maria answered. "Donny, you aren't a pushover, but you are a civilian and this is a huntsmen mission. You don't know the horrors that are out there, you have no idea the things I have seen….Think of your family first"._

_Don was crushed to hear those words. It wasn't enough that his dream had died, now he was being reminded that he would never be a huntsman. He hated the look on Amatista and Maria's eyes, how they saw him as helpless, weak, dead weight. He knew he was more than this, he knew he wasn't just a book store clerk…but once again, this cage of a town didn't let him fly….not anymore, he thought._

_Don had to swallow his pride and accept Amatista and Maria's words….but he was not about to let anyone step on his dream, no matter how foolish it might seem._

_Two nights later, Maria and Roberto began their hunt for the Whistler._

_The creature had been spotted near a traveling Grimm horde. Castañula was lucky enough to avoid the massive horde, but with a Whistler around, their luck might have run out. Whistlers tended to hunt around Grimm hordes rather than join them, always in the outskirts, always in the shadows. It was hard to distinguish which victims were slain by a Whistler or their horde, it was one of those things they used to mask their presence._

_Roberto was well aware of the danger the creature represented. He couldn't let it get near the village, far too many innocent lives depended on their success. To increase their odds, he brought a squad of 10 of his best students. Huntsmen in-training that had already been selected to join an Academy or take the license exam and become certified huntsmen. This was a trial by fire for sure but nothing they weren't going to face in the path he trained them for._

_The woods were an abyssal maze. Not a soul could be heard. It was a windless dark night, the hunting party could barely see in front of them with the light of their torches, but every single step felt like jumping to the void. The huntsmen were alert, ready for any strike of the wandering Grimm, but the deeper they ventured into the woods the clearer it was that they had been swallowed by pure darkness. In the woods, there was no distinction between who was the hunter and who was the prey._

_As the troops marched in the abyss, a young student was clearly in distress, breathing heavily with each step until suddenly, a cracking branch startled him._

" _Ah!" three shots from his rifle hit only the emptiness of the forest, only scaring off some birds._

_Roberto angrily took the rifle off of his student's hands, "What are you doing?! Pull yourself together! You are a huntsman now; you cannot afford to be afraid!"._

" _I..I'm sorry, master"._

" _Do not make me regret having recommended you"._

" _Yes, sir. I'm sorry s…so-something is there!" The student pointed at a nearby shaking bush._

_All students readied their weapons, but Roberto signaled them to stay on guard while Maria approached the bush._

_Every step she took made the bush shake more and more, her scythes ready for a strike._

" _Ah! Ants!"._

_The scythe barely missed Don's head before hitting a tree. "Gods Damnit, Don!"._

" _You stupid, fuck! What are you doing here, Cervantes?!", Roberto was mad, but Maria was even angrier._

" _I told you to stay out of this! This isn't a game!"._

" _I don't know what you are talking about. I was minding my own business simply going for a peaceful stroll in this dark, scary, definitely haunted and surprisingly full of poison ivy, beautiful forest"._

" _Don!"._

_Don knew he betrayed Maria and Amatitas' trust, but he felt this was something he had to do. Any chance he had to get close to his old dream was a risk he was willing to take…with or without the support of his niece. "I can help, Maria. I know this is not a game"._

" _You are making a mistake, Dominique"._

_Don deep down knew she was right, but he honestly didn't care._

_Roberto approached the two, "You better get back to the village before….". He stopped when the silence of the dark forest was broken, by a ghostly melody._

" _Whistle~". It was a haunting eight-note melody, soft, but menacing. The whistle sounded extremely close, surrounding the hunting party, it felt like the melody traveled across the trees, coming from every direction._

" _Whistle~"._

" _Everyone on your guard!" Roberto instructed. His students formed up, many of them terrified, the whistle filled them with so much horror, so much fear, they couldn't help but start shaking, even Maria felt shivers in her spine. Don could barely draw his sword, his hands shaking with the mere sound of the nearby whistle._

" _Whistle~"._

" _Where is it coming from?" Don asked._

_Maria was desperately trying to figure out exactly that. The whistle felt like an entity of its own, toying with them._

_Eventually, the sound began to get fainter. The whistle's melody was moving far away from them. A few minutes later, the whistle had become so deem, it could barely be heard anymore._

" _Is…Is it gone?"._

_The students finally felt at ease._

_Roberto was sweating, still in a panic. "Do not lower your guard!". His words were supposed to be a warning, but they only served to bring more panic._

" _Master…Mas….ter", Those were the last words of that student. The huntsmen saw in horror as his throat was slit. His body fell to reveal, The Whistler._

_The Grimm was a humanoid bird-like creature with talons for feet, human-like legs and covered in black feathers with the exception of the talons, arms, and face which were leathery. Its chest was covered with an exposed ribcage. Its leathery arms ended in talon-like hands, and each forearm had a retractable blade-like claw. The Grimm had two wing looking tails that ran from its back like a cape, and its beak was made of bone and resembled a face mask with circular holes across it, the mask only showed its sunken yellow eyes which were barely covered by the beast's feathery crest shaped like a round farmer's hat._

_The huntsmen saw in horror as the Grimm stood before them; its claw still bloodstained._

" _AHHHH!" Another student entered a frenzy at the sight of his dead classmate. He tried to slash the Grimm with his axe._

" _Wait!" Roberto's words fell on deaf ears as the rest of his students opened fire on the creature._

_The Whistler simply evaded the student's strike before slashing his arm to make him lose his axe, it then grabbed him by the head and used him as a meat shield to cover himself from the gunfire._

_Dragging his victim into the tree line, the huntsmen tried to follow but the Grimm climbed up a tree in a second._

" _Ahhhhh!", the huntsmen heard in terror as another victim fell prey to the Whistler. They didn't get a chance to breathe though. Immediately after, the creature leaped from the trees like a bullet, right in the middle of the battlefield, its claws extended and bloodthirsty._

_Swords, spears, axes, rifles, pistols, nothing was able to even scratch the creature. The Whistler moved unnaturally fast, at times it seemed as if it could teleport in the blink of an eye. Evading more strikes, the Grimm stood on a student's head, grabbing it with its talon before spinning and breaking her neck._

_The beast wasn't just fast, it was extremely strong as well. Able to throw people like they were nothing and leaping many feet in the air as if gravity itself was afraid of its wrath._

_It attempted to stab another student in the face, but finally its claw met the steel of Maria's scythe._

_The Grimm Reaper could barely keep up with the Whistler's speed, but her agility was unparalleled and the creature noticed. The beast slashed and stabbed but Maria managed to predict all its movements, her semblance let her react to strikes as soon as the Grimm started to move a single muscle._

_Other huntsmen tried to strike it as well, some even firing at it which only resulted on the Grimm evading their shoots and Maria having to block them._

_Eventually, the Grimm realized the threat Maria represented, a prey for later. The Whistler, disengaged, retreating to the tree line before quickly launching a new attack._

" _It's too fast! I can barely see it!"._

_The Whistler wasn't just fast, it wasn't just strong, there was something more dangerous about it._

_As it targeted a new prey, it cut the staff of another student, slashing her multiple times until her aura broke, it then used its massive strength to kick her against a tree, crushing her skull._

_The beast climbed another tree and once again leaped towards a prey, but it now met Roberto's mirror shield._

_The knight saved one of his students, but now it was face to face with the beast. The Whistler tried to stab with all its strength but Roberto's semblance managed to return the strike._

" _Wiaahhhh!" The beast wailed in pain. This only served to make it grow more vicious. It quickly kicked the shield, before slashing it twice. Roberto could barely keep balance, the impact of the strikes had pushed him several feet back, but the huntsman kept standing and his semblance had returned some good hits._

_The Whistler looked in pain, cuts on its chest smoked black. Roberto was growing confident, but the beast was growing mad._

_The Whistler was fast, it was strong, but worst of all…it was smart._

_The elder the Grimm the smarter they got and Whistlers were the smartest of all Grimm kind. They were able to observe, they were able to understand…they were able to learn._

_A student approached from behind, trying to slash the creature with his sword, but The Whistler quickly evaded with a spin, pushing the poor student towards Roberto's shield. As soon as the blade hit the reflective steel, the Grimm kicked it downwards, causing it to quickly slash the shield._

" _Wait!". Roberto was too slow. The swift move of the Whistler was faster than he could stop using his semblance. The slash was reflected on the student's chest, breaking his aura._

_Before Roberto could even react, the Whistler grabbed the student's head and threw him against his shield with enough force to make Roberto fall._

_As more huntsmen engaged the creature, Roberto sat there, watching the life fade away from his student as his innocent blood stained his shiny mirror shield._

" _..A…AAHHHH!"._

_The Whistler was relentless, it was tireless, it was unmatched. One by one the huntsmen kept falling and Maria and Don struggled to even delay it._

" _No, you won't!" Don managed to block one of the creature's strikes, but it didn't take kindly getting a prey stolen. It soon became apparent that Don was outmatched, the Grimm was far too fast for him to keep up._

_He managed to block a slash, his shield, and the Whistler's blade locked in a standstill._

" _You, ugly bas…" Don couldn't finish. Snarky remarks? Heroic quips? None of that could come out of his mouth, not when his eyes met the empty sunken yellow eyes of the Whistler. The beast stared at him and shivers crawled through Don's spine. He had fought Grimm before, he wanted to be a brave warrior and defeat monsters in his heroic adventures…but the Whistler? Its cold eyes sent a clear message to him. This was not a fantasy, this was not a game, this was not a book or a story about the monsters under your bed. The Whistler was a nightmare incarnate, a true monster._

_Maria came in and managed to slash and fire at the creature, saving Don before the two began to fight it together._

_Don changed to his spear. The Grimm Reaper and the Dreamer Knight fought the Whistler back. Maria's agility and speed were being complemented by Don's defense and added offensive input. But the Grimm had something they didn't, an endless supply of stamina and soon enough, Don and Maria began to grow tired and slower, exactly what the Grimm needed._

" _Ah!" Don was kicked back and hit a tree._

" _Don!" Maria yelled before blocking a new barrage of blades. She couldn't deflect them all, one even cut her mask in half to reveal her Silver Eyes._

_The surviving students managed to take the Grimm off Maria for enough time for her to recover._

" _Don! Don! Stand up!"._

_Don spat blood. "W-We can't stop it!"._

" _I need you to buy me sometime" Maria said._

" _How?!"._

" _Figure it out! We have to stop it or everyone at the village is dead!"._

_Don could barely stand, but he had to give it his all, people needed him, Amatista, he couldn't afford to fail. "I have an idea. Everyone, back off! Cover your ears!"._

_Maria understood and quickly managed to provide cover fire to the students to fall back. "Cover your ears!"._

_The survivors did so. Don took a deep breath, put his fingers in his mouth and immediately let out a powerful whistle. His semblance active, the Whistler was swarmed with hallucination which caused it to attack wildly and erratically._

" _Wiassssss!"._

" _Done! Maria, now!". Don said and Maria immediately stood, closing her eyes to focus._

" _What are you doing?!"._

" _Shut up, I need to focus!"._

_The Whistler was slashing trees left and right, but it suddenly stopped._

" _What?"._

_The creature was disoriented, but it was far too smart. It couldn't really see or hear clearly, but it didn't need to in order to get its prey. Its ribs broke apart and the Grimm took a massive breath of air, inflating its lunges like a massive balloon. The Whistler then let out a powerful sound wave, strong enough to push everyone back, shake the trees and turn off all the torches in the ground._

" _WHIIIIIISSSSSSS"._

" _Ahhhh!". Don, Maria and the rest of the huntsmen fell to the ground, launched backwards by the sound wave. Darkness swallowed the forest once more. Don couldn't stand, blinded by the darkness and deafened by the powerful wail of the Whistler. Don was disorientated, he could only see black and could only hear a whistle in his ears. He could barely make out some movement, it seemed like fighting, it seemed like bodies dropping…then, it looked like something was coming for him._

_When the Whistler finally grabbed Don by the neck and readied its blade for the killing blow, Don could only think of how sorry he was for failing Amatista, for failing Miguel and Margarita…The end of his story was going to be this sorrowful? He just wanted to be a hero, he just wanted to make his dream come true…was it true then? Was he really just dead weight?_

_The blade came down….and Maria's scythe caught it._

_The Grimm Reaper didn't need light to fight, her semblance gave her all the information she needed to defeat her enemies. The Whistler dropped Don to the groud as it battled Maria. With a shift move, Maria managed to kick the Grimm back, and soon enough, her eyes began to bring light to the dark abyss of the forest._

" _Life is precious…and it must. Be. Protected!"._

_The silver light of Maria's eyes brightened the forest around them, blinding the survivors and illuminating the area._

_The Whistler, however, was a relentless hunter, as soon as it saw her eyes beginning to glow, it ran fast behind the trees, barely being able to make it, but it wasn't fast enough, the silver light managed to destroy one of its claws, dusting it into nothingness._

" _Waaaaiiiiiiiiiiiisss!" The Whistler wailed in pain. It fell to its knees but soon vanished into the darkness of the forest._

" _Maria! Maria!", Don helped Maria stand, her body collapsing after her Silver Eyes went back to normal._

" _It's….it's over…"._

"… _I…I think so…I don't…" Don responded, shaken, holding the woman in his arms tightly._

_All the huntsmen laid on the ground. Some injured, some broken…most lifeless. It was just one Grimm, it was only another monster…that's what they thought. But the monsters the huntsmen were meant to face, were far worse than the darkest nightmares._

_Roberto crawled to the still-warm corpse of one of his students. Tears in his eyes, blood on his hands. They were young, Roberto had known them for years, he prepared them for this world…and now they laid dead in front of him. He couldn't protect them, he couldn't save them, he could just watch as their futures were stolen in a single night._

_There in the darkness, the sounds of the survivor's tears were soon drowned by the increasingly louder haunting melody…of the Whistler._

_With the break of dawn, the light finally came to the forest. But the nightmare didn't fade._

_Maria left Don at his home. There Amatista was crushed, seeing her uncle injured, beaten. When she realized he was gone, fear overcame her, she spent all night terrified of what could have happened to him._

_She was enraged, and didn't hide it for a second. Amatista didn't even want to see him. "I told you so! I told you!", she said, with tears running on her eyes, Santiago holding her as she broke down crying._

_He could have died that night…he could have left her alone again. He could have thrown away his life for a stupid delusion…Don knew it, he wasn't blind to the pain he caused to his beloved niece, let alone the suffering he could have caused her, the same pain he once felt as well….All, to live a stupid dream._

_The Cervantes household was pained, but at least there was some relief, at least there was a light at the end of that tunnel….But for Roberto? For the man who had to go house by house telling heartbroken mothers the fate of their children? No, for Roberto, that nightmare would haunt him for the rest of his life._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for reading. As always, any feedback is highly appreciated.
> 
> A bit of lore. The Whistler is based on the Venezuelan spirit called "El Silbon", a ghost known for its characteristic whistle. Just like the Whistler, El Silbon's whistle can be heard closer when the spirit is far away and far away when the spirit is closer. The Whistler uses this to find its prey, filling them with fear so that it can detect the negative emotions in the distance, then fill them with a false sense of security when it's about to strike. This Grimm is my attempt at making an intelligent Grimm able to fight at the same level as a huntsman.
> 
> Hope you enjoyed it and take care.


	14. The Temple of Farewell

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The old mentors watch as their squires duel just like the two rivals did so many years ago.

**Chapter XIV**

**The Temple of Farewell**

"Ten. I took ten of my students. You remember how many came back, right? Three". Roberto said. Anger, sorrow, regret, all could be heard with every single word coming from his mouth.

"Do you know what happened to the six people who made it out that night? One was found dead a year after, the other two survived a few years more before meeting the same fate, hell, I wouldn't be surprised if Calavera was rotting in a ditch as we speak…That leaves just you and me, pal". Roberto said.

Don sat there in shock, the memories of that night still gave him nightmares, but in Roberto's eyes, he could see that those ghosts had been torturing him far worse than he could've ever imagined.

"They were just children; they had their lives ahead of them and I killed them…It wasn't the first time either". A bandit tried to help Roberto breathe from his mask but he simply threw it away. "I spent decades training innocent children, filling their heads with fantasies of glory and honor, telling them of the pride they should feel of being called huntsmen…and then I sent them to die in a pointless, endless war, wasting their lives, robbing them of any future and FOR WHAT?! A world that will never remember their names!? Where is the honor in that? Where is the glory? Where are all those values? They mean nothing!".

Don looked with tears in his eyes how the noble knight that once taught him the honor of being a huntsman, had become a cynical shadow of his former self, too broken from all his regrets.

"They deserved better. They deserved a better teacher, a better world, and a better future but they didn't get them. No one will. We live in a world of hopelessness, of apathy and cruelty…and if their suffering doesn't matter, then who cares about the suffering of others? Who cares about the people?".

"Heroes do!".

"Heroes are a joke! Tell me you didn't waste your life! Tell me you aren't wasting that boy's life! He is going to get himself killed one day and nothing you taught him is going to matter anyway!".

Don saw him straight in the eyes, "I don't believe you….".

"You stupid…".

"I don't believe this is the future you want for your grandson, and I don't believe these are the values you taught him because those weren't the ones you taught me!".

Roberto was shocked by those words.

"Roberto, you know this isn't right. Your grandson, this is what you want him to become? Yet another monster in this world?".

"You know nothing about Reinaldo".

"I failed Amatista, I'm failing Jaune. Please don't fail your grandson. Please be better than I've been!". For Don it wasn't just his ghosts haunting him what hurt his already broken heart, it was seeing those ghosts taint even the smallest joyful memory of the past with a dark present.

Roberto was starting to shake in anger and indignation. He hated Don…but he also hated himself. He grabbed his cane and smacked Don once more.

"Do not. Tell me. Who the disgrace is here!", He struggled to breathe, a bandit quickly handing him his mask, "You don't have the right! You don't get to come here and tell ME I'm the one who brings suffering to the ones I love. Not after what you did to your niece. You…You…Have no right….". Roberto began to cry and Don looked at him with sorrow. That doubt and self-hatred, he knew it far too well. They were both failures, relics of a past far gone who destroyed their own lives and kept doing just that. Worthless.

The commotion outside finally caught everyone's attention.

Dawn had arrived and in the White Moon tribe's camp, a battle was about to start.

"What's going on?" Roberto's assistant asked a guard outside the tent.

"Reinaldo challenged a prisoner to a duel".

"A prisoner?".

"Yeah, the blonde guy that was with the old man".

Don got goosebumps at hearing that, "Jaune…Jaune!". He was quickly grabbed by the bandits who tried to subdue him as he moved wildly trying to rush to his student's side.

"Let me go! Please! Jaune!".

"Get us to the balcony". Roberto instructed, much to everyone's surprise.

The old man gave a malicious smile to his old rival.

The bandits had prepared an arena and they were all cheering in anticipation for the match.

Reinaldo was stretching, reading himself for his duel. He grabbed his shield, Azulejo's Talon, a kite shield with a reflective blueish surface. He raised his weapon proudly and he roared at the crowd to get the blood pumping.

On the other side of the arena, Jaune was pushed to the floor by his bandit captors, his sword was soon tossed in front of him.

"Come on, Squire! Let's get the show goin….Grandpa?". Reinaldo was shocked at the sight of his grandfather in the balcony of his tent.

Jaune stood up with his sword in hand, he turned at the balcony and saw how Don was being held in place by more bandits.

"Don!".

"Jaune! Roberto, please let him go, whatever you are going to do, do it to me instead!".

"Shut up. Just sit tight. I want to see what you taught that boy of yours", Roberto replied, leaving Don terrified at the fate of his mentee.

Roberto stared at Reinaldo, the once cheerful and confident bandit now was silent and serious. Knowing that his grandfather would be watching his match put a great deal of pressure on him to prove himself to the man he admired so much.

"Get ready, pal".

"We don't have to do this".

"Oh, yes we DO!". Reinaldo responded, a shimmer came from his mirror shield, blinding momentarily everyone around him.

Once Jaune's eyes adjusted, he saw in shock…at himself.

Reinaldo's semblance, Mirror Minion, had created a replica of Jaune. An aura construct with his sword in hand and even his exact same stance.

"Now…bring it on, SQUIRE!".

The minion launched an attack at high speed. Jaune was able to pull out his shield in time to block it and the subsequent slashes. The minion was as strong as Jaune himself, pushing him back with every slash, but Jaune managed to make an opening, pushing the minion with a shield bash and stabbing it through the chest.

The minion shattered like glass, but Jaune didn't get a chance to recover before a new minion spawned, this one held both a sword and shield just like Jaune did.

This new minion had a better defense. While Jaune was able to recover some ground, the minion had his same defensive prowess and soon enough, he began to see himself on the side of his first fight, only now he was the one being blocked, shield bashed, and stabbed.

The minion not only copied his look and weapon, but it also copied his fighting style perfectly. Jaune could barely dodge the stab. But he couldn't avoid the shield bash that followed, nor the slash that came after.

Driven back, Jaune swapped to his greatsword, needing extra damage to go through the minion's shield. He charged towards it, ready to deliver a powerful blow, but from his side, Reinaldo responded with a dropkick, catching him off guard.

Azulejo's Talon split into twin arm blades, allowing the blue bandit to slash viciously at his opponent.

Jaune managed to recover balance before charging at Reinaldo. The bandit had a malicious grin when the shield minion stepped in front of him and blocked the strike for its master.

Before Jaune could react, Reinaldo shot through his own minion with the hidden shotguns from Azulejo's Talon. The shot sent Jaune flying backward, only stopping when a greatsword minion slashed him on the back.

"Jaune!".

"Hahahah!" Roberto laughed while the crowd cheered for Reinaldo.

Reinaldo vowed and savored his glory and the cheers of his bandit tribe, an opportunity Jaune took to recover some ground.

Thankfully, his aura and his armor saved his life from that blast. He kicked the minion's leg, bringing it to the ground, before taking his sword back and charging at Reinaldo.

Jaune returned to his sword and shield mode, getting ready to take some shotgun blasts. Reinaldo summoned a new shield minion, thinking the same trick would work twice, but Jaune was quick to kick the minion as hard as he could, dropping it to the ground. Jaune's sword met Reinaldo's blades, the two traded blows for a moment, Reinaldo managed to slash Jaune's shield many times at high speed.

Jaune responded with slashes of his own, none could break Reinaldo's defense, especially not when he swapped back to his mirror shield. Jaune locked his sword on Reinaldo's shield but was quickly attacked from the side by the greatsword minion, followed soon after by a shield bash from the shield minion.

Now outnumbered 3 to 1, Jaune decided to take his master's teachings to heart and changed to his spear.

"Oh. The legacy of the Raging Wind continues. Eh? Cervantes?". Roberto remarked with a sarcastic and mocking tone.

Don felt the insult to his brother like a stab to the heart, but he had bigger concerns, his student's life was in danger and he blamed himself for every drop of blood he spilled.

Jaune waited for his opponents to strike. Reinaldo stayed behind with his shield risen, while his minions charged together, ready for the kill.

Jaune didn't let them get too close. Like his master taught him, his spear let him apply distance between him and his opponents. He thrusted towards the shield minion, stopping it on its tracks before spinning to evade a strike from the greatsword minion and slashing. The minion blocked with its weapon while its partner charged shield first, but Jaune managed to evade the trampling shield by swiftly spinning behind it, hitting it with the blunt end of his spear before blocking a slash from the greatsword minion.

Don just couldn't take, "Roberto!".

"I said, Shut up! You are his mentor, aren't you? If the kid fails and dies, you are the one responsible! Sit down and watch!". Roberto responded with anger…and regret.

Jaune tried to thrust once more, this time aiming to impale the greatsword minion, but the shield minion stepped in and took the hit directly. To his surprise, the shield actually began to crack. With the opportunity in sight, Jaune rapidly spun hitting the shield hard twice with the blunt end of the spear before slashing with force and breaking it. As soon as the shield shattered, Jaune impaled the shield minion and rushed to the greatsword minion behind it, but the minion delivered a powerful strike that Jaune barely managed to avoid before stepping back to catch a breath.

"Not bad, Squire. But the fun, has just begun". Reinaldo said, a new shimmer spawned a spear-wielding minion and soon enough, a second one appeared next to it.

The crowd cheered.

Jaune was now outnumbered 4 to 1. He was being outmatched by his opponent and by his own self. His mentor was held prisoner and innocent people depended on him. Failure was lurking closer and closer…but he had to try.

The spear minions charged. Jaune had no other option but to evade them and try to avoid them as much as he could, a feat easier said than done.

The spears moved and spun fast. Each minion moved as if dancing, the same movements Don had taught Jaune were now being used against him. He managed to evade a stab and deflect a slash, but spinning staves hit him multiple times and their blade slashed his legs, arms, and torso.

"Ah!". Jaune's pained screams were torture for Don.

Spears were flying and spinning and slashing. Jaune managed to hit a minion on the chin before blocking a slash of another one, kicking it back to gain some ground, but the young huntsman forgot about the greatsword minion that launched another strike he could barely evade in time.

He struggled to maintain balance, and as soon as lifted his gaze he saw a javelin flying towards him. He barely had time to detach his sword from the spear to release his shield and block the javelin that immediately shattered upon contact with the steel.

"Useless, prick" Reinaldo said before shooting the now weaponless minion and spawning a new shield one.

Jaune couldn't continue like this. He needed to figure out a plan, quick, or else he wouldn't be able to make it out of this battle.

The greatsword minion charged once more, Jaune blocked the strike but didn't get a chance to respond before a flurry of spear stabs began to drive him back. Jaune dodge-rolled to the side, trying to recover, but the shield minion was waiting for him, slashing with its sword that Jaune managed to parry twice before kicking it back.

The greatsword minion leaped for a strike, but Jaune saw the opportunity and shield bashed it, hitting it with his shield and swinging it over him, making it lose its copied greatsword and sending it crashing headfirst on the ground, shattering it.

Reinaldo had an angry glare at the sight of another minion being destroyed. He took a quick glance at his grandfather who only gave him a cold look, something that only served to make the young bandit more frustrated.

Jaune's shield blocked another flurry of spear strikes with precision, ending with him kicking the spear minion before changing into his greatsword mode for a killing blow. The shield minion, however, smashed its shield on his stomach with force, sending him flying backward and losing his greatsword in the process.

Jaune was beaten and growing tired. There had to be a weakness, there had to be away, he just needed to find it.

The minions approached menacingly, Jaune's greatsword was out of his reach, but right next to him there was the copied greatsword from one of the defeated minions. The spear minion leaped for a stab. With no other options, Jaune grabbed the copied greatsword and swung it against the minion, evading the spear and cutting it in half, shattering it.

Jaune engaged in battle with the shield minion which blocked his strikes one after the other, eventually, the minion tried to go for a stab, but Jaune evade it and locked its arm under his armpit, bashing the minion's head with the blunt end of his greatsword and shattering its skull.

As the minion crumbled, Jaune was tackled from the side and pinned to the ground by a new minion. Jaune tried to reach his copied greatsword but the minion kept punching him, forcing him to block and protect his head. Jaune managed to grab the minion's wrist, that's when he noticed, this minion was different from all the ones he had been fighting. All previous minions also copied his weapon, but this one? It was fighting him with its bare hands.

Jaune pushed the minion off of him, quickly grabbed the copied greatsword, and decapitate it, shattering both the minion and the greatsword.

He stood there, breathing heavily, spitting a bit of blood. But he was not going to give up. He stumbled toward his greatsword and stood ready for the next wave.

"He is as stubborn as you are, Cervantes" Roberto said mockingly.

Reinaldo was visibly frustrated. "Don't think you are top shit! Squire!". He shouted, summoning a new greatsword minion.

Jaune swapped to his sword and shield to block the greatsword, but soon a new shield minion appeared. In order to take both at once, he swapped to his spear but that was just responded by another spear minion showing up.

Once again, Jaune was overwhelmed by strikes coming from all directions. Spear to the legs, greatsword to the arms and chest, and a final shield bash that sent him rolling backward, much to the delight of the crowd.

"Hehehe. He is giving a good fight, I'm impressed. But if he is smart, he will just give up". Roberto said.

Don couldn't take it anymore. "That's enough!" the old man stood frenetically, he was about to let out a whistle, the hardest he could with a dry mouth but Roberto was prepared, he immediately had two of his bandits hold him, cover his mouth and gag him to stop him from using his semblance.

Roberto grabbed Don's head. "I told you. His death is your responsibility. I want you to see what I saw for decades. I want you to see what happens when you fill a child's mind with stupid dreams in a world that will crush him! Now, sit down and watch!".

The minions continued their assault and Jaune could barely keep up with them. His aura was struggling to hold up. Spears, greatswords, sword and shield, Jaune couldn't respond to all of them at once, for every strike he blocked two more hit him, and every opening he saw was lost within seconds.

Jaune had resorted to evade and run, he was out of options, but even then, the minions were still catching up to him.

He blocked a spear strike and a sword slash, but the power of them made him lose balance and a final greatsword strike sent him to the ground once more.

The crowd cheered while Don could do nothing but shake and try to yell, his eyes getting teary at the sight of his apprentice in such peril.

Reinaldo gloated on his opponent's sad state, "Is that really all you got? I mean, I knew I was going to kick your ass, but I wasn't expecting you to be this pathetic. I've been calling you a squire this whole time and you just act like some random pampered princess? What a disappointment….Give up".

Jaune could barely stand, his face covered in dirt and his body in bruises and cuts, too many for his aura to heal all quickly.

"4v1, pal. Imma give you a deal. Give up now, kiss my boots, and maybe, just maybe I'll let you be my squire. I'll even give you a cute nickname. How does princess sparklytooshie sound? Hahah".

Jaune stood and cracked his back before beginning to walk towards the center of the arena.

"Oh, quick on the boot kissing, aren't you?".

As soon as Jaune stepped in the middle of the battlefield, the minions surrounded him.

Reinaldo and the crowd laughed mockingly, but soon their laughs ended with confused whispers when Jaune stowed his sword.

Don was just praying for everything to end, for his student to be saved and for this nightmare to come to an end…Roberto saw that stance and thought differently though.

When Jaune raised his fists, Roberto's eyes got wide…he knew that stance.

The crowd burst into even louder laughter. But Reinaldo didn't laugh, not when he saw that Jaune's expression had changed. The young man was bitten, covered in dirt and wounds…and he was smiling.

"You…are mocking me, punk?!". Reinaldo was infuriated by that smile, but Jaune just stayed silent, determined to give it his all on one last stand.

"Kill him!" Reinaldo enraged ordered his minions which all charged from different directions.

Jaune didn't start his journey as a hero. He started from the bottom, he started as the weak link in his team. When he started this journey, life kicked him down until he hit rock bottom…and then he climbed up, with nothing but a dream, determination, a good teacher…and his bare hands.

The spear minion charged for a stab. Don braced himself for the impalement of his student…and everyone was shocked when Jaune's aura glowed bright and the spear shattered against his guarding arms. Jaune had used his semblance for a small bit, increasing his defenses for a small second to conserve what little aura he had left, but it was enough. He immediately responded with a strong fist to the face of the minion, shattering it with all his strength before spinning and evading the slash from the greatsword minion, grabbing its weapon, kicking its leg, and making it lose balance enough to move him on the path of the shield minion's blade and with a shift move, Jaune used the copied greatsword to decapitate the last minion.

The crowd was in shock, Reinaldo couldn't believe his eyes. Jaune in a swift move managed to shatter all three minions, with nothing but his bare hands.

Don himself was in awe at the feat…But Roberto? No. Roberto was mainly filled with nostalgia, for he knew that move far too well.

"Hehe. You taught him well, Cervantes".

Reinaldo was furious. He quickly summoned more minions, only two this time though and to everyone's surprise, neither of them wielded weapons, they had their swords stowed, just like Jaune.

Jaune's smile just grew bigger and Reinaldo just became madder. "Rip that smile from his face!".

The minions, charged at Jaune but he quickly shattered both with the copied greatsword. Reinaldo just kept summoning continuously, and just like before, every minion fought with only their bare hands.

Eventually, Jaune's copied greatsword broke, but not before he managed to steal a sword from one of the minion's side.

Reinaldo could only keep summoning minions two at a time, always staying on the back lines and letting his minions do the job.

A quick slash, and a stab, and the minions just crumbled. Without their weapons, the minions were no longer a threat, Jaune was able to do quick work of them and that just infuriated Reinaldo by the second.

A minion tried to punch Jaune repeatedly, but he evaded its punches before grabbing its arm and hitting its stomach multiple times with the hilt of his copied sword. He then took the sword from its side and slashed it. When the second minion charged at him, Jaune easily cut both its arms with his two copied swords and slashed its head to bring it down.

Reinaldo's shield shimmered once more…but only one minion was summoned.

The crowd saw in confusion as Reinaldo breath heavily and its lone minion charged with its naked fists, but Jaune shattered in seconds and as soon as he did, the two copied blades on his hands became dust as well.

Reinaldo was sweating and was clearly exhausted.

"How?" A bandit asked.

Roberto smiled "The kid is smarter than he looks".

Jaune had been analyzing his opponent throughout the entire fight, always searching, always studying until he finally understood. "You know? Your semblance is…so unfair!", he said, struggling to breathe as well.

Reinaldo stood there in shock and fatigue.

Jaune struggled to speak himself, but he needed the break…and he needed some time. "You send people their own reflection to fight for you. Super brave…arg…but it does the job….Of course, you can only make three at the time though".

Reinaldo's frustration was evident, Jaune had him figured out.

"You can't copy your copies and their weapons count as copies, that's why you couldn't make more when I stole their swords".

The crowd began to murmur and Roberto simply chuckled.

"You fought alongside them at first…but then you ran away and hid behind them? I thought you were a brave knight!".

Reinaldo got pissed off at that comment.

"Why didn't you keep fighting? Why hide? Fear? You were winning, why were you afraid?...Oh, I know why". Jaune smiled mockingly. "Making copies takes a lot of aura…and you just ran out".

Reinaldo's eyes widen. This boy played him, lured him into anger to make him spawn more and more minions. The tables had turned.

Roberto let out a laugh, "Hahaha! Nice one! Kid!".

"G-grandpa…".

"You got yourself a good one, Cervantes….but aura doesn't win fights" Roberto turned at his grandson. "Are you going to give up? Are you going to take this humiliation?! Are you just another coward?!".

"NO, SIR!".

"Then, strike!" Roberto ordered and Reinaldo didn't hesitate.

The blue bandit rushed with his twin blades in hand. Jaune managed to block the strikes with his shield and push him back, swiftly changing to his spear.

As their mentors before them, the squires clashed on the battlefield. Spear met mirror shield once more like all those years ago.

Reinaldo was basically out of aura, Jaune's strikes weren't even getting healed at that point but he didn't care, he was not going to go down a failure, not in front of his grandfather.

Reinaldo brought his blade down but Jaune blocked it with his staff and slid behind him, swinging his spear to slash his back.

Jaune returned with a thrust but Reinaldo swapped to his shield and quickly back to his blades.

Jaune's strikes were precise and quick. Spinning his spear, he forced Reinaldo on the defense, making him block the strikes of the spear with each blade and driving him back.

Reinaldo and Jaune locked their weapons and their eyes.

"I'll rip that dumb smile off your face!".

"Not going to happen!".

Jaune headbutted Reinaldo right on the nose causing it to bleed before resuming his assault, his slashes were effective now that his opponent was dazed. A quick spin and low sweep and Reinaldo were on the ground, Jaune's spear right on his face.

"It's over", Jaune said, breathing heavily, wounded, exhausted, but still standing.

Reinaldo dropped his head, his aura was broken, his nose might have been as well…and his defeated eyes met those of his grandfather.

Roberto sat there, seeing the blood on his grandson's face. It wasn't the first time he saw those eyes. The bloody face of one of his students. His life wasted, his path leading him to nothing but death and suffering…a path he walked him into.

Roberto's hands began to shake as the sight of his grandson injured made him realize just how much of a failure he truly was.

Reinaldo saw the look of regret on his grandfather's eyes. He feared it was a look of disappointment. That fear, that horror, it just filled him with hatred and rage.

"AHHHHHH!" Reinaldo stroke Jaune's spear to the side and quickly stood up and tackled him to the ground.

Jaune was barely able to defend himself from the slashes with his spear, but Reinaldo's strikes were vicious.

Don struggled and shook. His terror for the safety of his student was breaking him.

Jaune and Reinaldo locked their weapons again, but things were taking a turn for the worse when Reinaldo slowly moved the barrel of his shotgun until it was aimed straight at Jaune's head.

"End of the line, squire. You really thought you could beat me?! You are nothing but a worthless moron! You pathetic….".

At that moment, Reinaldo's hatred simply turned into incredulity. He had a gun to his head…and the idiot was smiling.

"I didn't need to win…I just needed to stall".

"W-what?".

"CHHHARRRGGEEE!".

The battle served as the best distraction Jaune could have hoped for. All bandits gathered in a single place, too focused on the fight to notice the arrival of Captain Ludmila and the Gaviota Guard.

Roberto and Reinaldo saw in shock how the guards quickly dispatched the frenetic bandits.

His world was crumbling around him, Reinaldo let go of Jaune and simply stood up stunned, seeing how everything came down in a matter of seconds.

Jaune stood up. He was rejoiced for the arrival of the calvary…but a side of him felt but sympathy for Reinaldo. An apprentice who took the wrong path and now was about to pay the price.

Roberto saw how his decisions; his cynicism had finally caught him. His crimes lead not only to the end of his road but saddest of all, to yet another future, stolen, this time the one of his grandson.

His bandits quickly abandoned their ruler and soon guards arrived to aid Don and arrest the boss of the White Moon Tribe.

Don stood next to his former mentor, disillusion and sorrow in his eyes as the old man just sat there with an empty gaze towards his grandson, now in chains.

"You know? The role of the elders is pretty straightforward, not that it's easy but it's simple in nature…We are responsible for passing the torch. It is our responsibility to guide, to teach, and to care for them. The next generation, the future of this world…I failed so many of them…I failed my grandson the most, walked him into a path he might never walk back from…". Roberto said with a broken heart.

Don stood tearfully. "We say we love them and then we cause them so much pain. What happened to us, Roberto?".

"Hehe. We put ourselves before their future. We should have protected that…instead we killed our dreams and theirs in the process".

Don couldn't even see Roberto in the eyes. But he soon raised his gaze, when the old man grabbed his hand.

"It was good to see you, old friend….I'm sorry I failed you". Roberto said.

"…I'm sorry I failed you too". Don replied.

Jaune could barely stand, he almost tripped and fell but Captain Ludmila herself caught him and helped him.

"Nicely done, huntsman, you didn't have to get this beaten up though". Ludmila said.

Jaune chuckled a bit "I needed to buy you time. I even had to monologue, hehe, Arg!", the pain of his injuries began to show from his confident façade.

"Easy, easy. Sorry for the delay. It took us a while to find your little accomplice".

"Is he ok?".

"Already at the camp, that little guy was braver than any soldier I've met".

Jaune was relieved of hearing that Cardo was safe, he felt warm in his heart knowing he had fulfilled his promise.

As the guards continued rounding up the bandit tribe and freeing the innocent faunus. Jaune noticed how Don silently walked away from the camp without saying a word.

"Thanks for everything, Captain".

"Wait, where are you going?..kid?".

Jaune followed Don all the way back to the forest until he finally was able to catch up to him.

"Don! Where are you going?!"

"Far away from here".

Jaune kept chasing his mentor, but the man was broken to no repair. "Don! Wait!

"Kid, stop".

"Just talk to me!".

Don took off his hat, he didn't deserve to wear it, not the last memento of his dear brother, not at that moment. "…I lied.".

"What?".

"I lied…about everything…about who I am," Don said.

Jaune was confused by the answer, "Wh…Is this about?…Don, I know you are not a legendary huntsman, I've known for months, that doesn't…..".

"I'm not a huntsman! Period!".

The forest fell silent, not even the birds, bugs, and river dared to make a sound.

"I'm not a hero…I'm not a knight…I didn't…cut a King Taijitus' head off. I didn't ride on the back of a Kelpie. I didn't save millions, fight thousands, rescue beautiful princesses, or slay horrible beasts. Lies, it was all lies!".

Jaune was surprised at his words. But it made no difference to him, not after everything he did for him, not after everything he taught him and how much he helped him. He tried to approach his mentor. "Don…I know those were just stories. That doesn't change anything. It doesn't matter if you aren't a huntsman, you are still a hero and a good man".

"A good man?..haha" Don slapped Jaune's hand off of his shoulder, "A good man? No. You wanna know the sort of man I am? Who and what I truly am?...let me tell you a story".

* * *

_After that nightmarish night, Amatista put her foot on the ground. It was over, she forbade her uncle from even grabbing his sword again, locking it in the basement. She didn't want to hear anything else about huntsmen. She even threw away Don's letters, the last slivers of his dead dream. Who could have blamed her? She lost her father and her mother, now her uncle was throwing himself to the mouth of beasts as if it was a game? She couldn't bear the thought of losing him too._

_Don tried to make her understand but he really wasn't in a position to discuss anything. He had betrayed her trust; he had seen first-hand the horrors that hid in the darkness of Remnant. Had he continued on that path, he would have ended up as dead as his dream…still, his heart pained, for the future he wanted to build for himself was completely out of reach now. All his ambition, all of his hopes, gone._

_The final nail on his dream's coffin arrived a few years later._

" _Ma...Maria? MARIA!" Don ran to catch an exhausted Maria who could barely walk. She was using her last scythe as a cane and was covered in dirt and blood. She had been walking for what seemed to be days, crawling from the mountains relying solely on her semblance to guide her path…. her beautiful silver eyes, lost._

_Don and Amatista took her to the hospital where she slept for a few days._

_The sight of his dear friend, the woman he looked up to so much now blinded and on a hospital bed made his heart shrink and tremble._

" _Aunt Maria, you know you can stay with us, please take the time you need to rest"._

" _Thank you, sweetie. But I really can't stay here for long…I'm afraid I might bring danger to the both of you"._

" _Those bastards! When I find them I'm gonna…"._

" _Sit down, please!" Amatista said, pulling Don down to his seat once more. "But how can we help then?"._

" _I have a friend in Atlas that can help me out with my…this" she pointed at her eyes, heartbroken at the loss of her father's legacy. "If you can help me get there, I would greatly appreciate it"._

" _Of course, aunt Maria."._

" _Thank you, sweetie,…Could you excuse us for a moment?"._

" _Oh...sure. I'll go with Santiago to prepare the trip then"._

" _Thank you". Maria smiled as Amatista left the room, her smile immediately fading the moment she heard the door close._

" _Don…"._

" _I won't sit around and just let this go!"._

" _I already took care of it! Don, just listen to me!". Maria said. She grabbed Don's hand and turned to face him. Don could only see the bandages on her eyes and the melancholic expression on her face._

" _I'm done"._

" _What?"._

" _I'm done being a huntress. I can't do it anymore." Maria said, her voice cracking but crying was now painful to her._

" _I gave my life to this job, to protecting others and now I've lost everything"._

" _That's not true. Maria, please"._

" _The Grimm Reaper is dead, do you understand? If anyone asks, that's what you'll tell them"._

" _You…You are giving up?" Don was heartbroken but he couldn't blame her, not in the state she was, he just hated the mere idea of her stopping to be the greatest hero Remnant had seen._

_Maria playfully caressed his hand with her thumb. "Don, you have to let it go. The life of a huntsman is full of sacrifices. You have a good life here with your niece, a peaceful one. You have no idea how much I envy you for that…Don't throw it away for a delusion"._

_And with those words, Don's dream was buried. Even his hero told him to give up, let the dream die and continue with his life. He knew she meant well; he knew that so did Amatista. He understood they just wanted him to be safe but he was trapped. His wings were cut and he was in chains, never to see the light of the future he so desperately wanted._

_Thus, the dream died, and the dreamer laid awake, forced to spend every day wondering what could have been._

_The years passed in an instant, the hopeful young man that used to train for a life of adventure, was now an old man trapped behind the counter of a bookstore, reading about the accomplishments of better and more fortunate men._

_Amatista and Santiago finally got married, a breath of joy in Don's life. He loved seeing his beloved niece so happy, she deserved every bit of happiness she got. Don at times felt that if he wasn't happy with his own life, at least he could feel happy about Amatista's bright smile._

_The family all lived together in the Cervantes household. There were always talks about the bright future the couple was thinking of having. Maybe open a business, maybe a restaurant or a bakery, Amatista loved to cook, she was very passionate about it._

_At dinner one night, Don's attention was caught by a comment from his niece. Apparently, she and Santiago were considering moving to the main Kingdom, especially because of a special announcement._

" _We are having a baby!"._

_Don couldn't believe it, the moment he heard that he remembered the joyful eyes of his brother and sister-in-law when they had her and couldn't help but burst out in tears. "Amatista!" Don hugged his niece with so much joy, lifting her and spinning her around the room._

" _Uncle Don! Stop it! Haha"._

_The news gave life to Don once more, his smile had recovered a bit of luster. Something that didn't last long, however._

_It turned out that the reason the couple was considering to move, was so that the baby could grow up safe in a Kingdom. The village was a settlement, after all, so Grimm attacks were always a concern._

_Don was saddened at the idea, but he had no say in the matter. It wasn't a final decision however but he was sure it was going to be the case. He was happy for their future…but she was going to leave….he would be alone._

_As the months passed, that lingering thought kept popping up in Don's mind. He had made a promise to his brother to always stay by his niece's side, to always protect her…but if she was going to leave with her husband, then he really couldn't do anything, right?_

_Don was sitting one day reading one of his novels, not really paying attention to what he was reading, his mind was far too preoccupied with a million thoughts._

_This town, this village, he had been living there all his life. He knew every street, every store, every house, every dumpster, and every villager and it was always the same routine every single day. Wake up, go to work, go back home, go to bed. Rinse and repeat over and over and over and over again until the day he dies._

_He was stuck in this cage, now an old useless man. But what tied him now?_

_He saw an illustration of a brave knight on his noble steed. A true hero and adventurer and he thought to himself "that could have been me". That could have been him…if only…if only what? What tied him? What didn't let him fly?_

_Every time he asked himself that question the same answer came to him and every time it did it filled him with shame and disgust in himself. "Amatista"._

_Don tried as much as he could to reject the idea, but aside of him couldn't stop considering that it was true. Had it not been for Amatista, he would have left this town, he would have become a Huntsman and fulfill his dream when he was young and had his entire life ahead of him. Had it not been for that promise he made to his brother, he would have become the knight he always wanted to be, he would have lived many adventures, books would have been written about him. Instead, he stayed locked in this forgotten town, with nothing but books and broken fantasies….but Amatista was now leaving._

_If Amatista and Santiago were going to move, there really was nothing tying him anymore. There was no reason for him to stay and waste the few years he had left before old age finally claimed his life. He didn't have to end up a broken man covered in dust and dead fantasies….there was still a chance._

_The next few days, Don considered the thought more and more. He prepared a backpack, putting things in it and then taking them out just to put them in again later. He had his doubts. What was he doing? It was too late, wasn´t it? No, why would it be? But he was too old now. Age is just a number, he felt like a 20-year-old still! But what about what Maria said? Well she wasn't there now, was she? And Amatista? What about his promise to Miguel?...She had a husband now and she could take care of herself._

_One night, Don finally managed to break the lock of the basement while everyone was asleep and got his old dusty sword and shield out. He looked at the burning windmill with nostalgia before hiding the weapon upstairs with the rest of his traveling kit._

_He had everything ready for the eventual journey…but he couldn't bring himself to do it._

_Amatista and Santiago hadn't advanced on their moving plans and in fact, they didn't seem to be considering it anymore. Don was getting frustrated about this._

_As the months went by and Amatista's belly kept growing. Don had lost any hope of them leaving for the Kingdoms. It seemed like the baby was going to be born in Castañula and most likely would grow there…yet another chain._

_A few times Don considered just leaving. Nobody was going to miss him, nobody needed him. Amatista had Santiago and he could come back to visit. There really was no harm…but he couldn't do it. He couldn't leave, every time he tried, he remembered his brother's face, he remembered holding his niece in his arms and he just hated himself every time. What was he doing? How could he think of her like this? Chains? That's his niece, that's his treasure, what kind of monster would think of her like that?_

_After a few months, Don just gave up. He regretted even considering the idea. All he was doing was hurting himself, all he was doing was blaming his niece for being born, what was wrong with him?! How could he do such a thing? Don was disgusted at himself and still…he just kept reading his fantasy books and reminiscing of the dream he could have fulfilled._

_He decided to let it go, to just accept that in this world dreams do not come true._

_Don arrived home one night…and the air felt tense. He walked to the living room and saw his beloved niece…pale, paralyzed in shock._

_Amatista turned slowly, "Uncle Don…..Santiago….". She couldn't hold the tears. Santiago had died a victim of a Grimm attack._

_Amatista was wrecked. Her heart shattered like glass._

" _It's ok, It's ok. I'm here…I'm here". Don held his heartbroken niece in his arms. There was nothing else he could do but being there for her…as he promised._

_Loss had come to define the Cervantes family. Amatista was an orphan and now a widow with a baby soon to come. But she felt some relief knowing that her uncle was still there with her, always supporting her._

_Don however didn't feel the same way. He gave his life to her…and he wanted it back._

_A few days after the funeral. Don had left Amatista in bed and was sitting on the porch with a blank stare in his eyes. If only there were more heroes, this wouldn't have happened. If only he had become a hero maybe Santiago would still be alive, maybe he would still be with his niece and maybe they would have built a beautiful family together…maybe…maybe._

_Maybe if he had taken his sword, he could have made a difference. Maybe he couldn't have. Maybe he would have died years ago in some forest in the middle of nowhere….but maybe those years prior to his death he may have had the most amazing adventures no man had experience in a lifetime. Maybe if he had become a huntsman, he would have been able to save hundreds, beloved by thousands, and made a name for himself. Maybe if he had followed his dream he would have seen every corner of this world and mark his legend across every kingdom and settlement in Remnant….Maybe…Maybe if he hadn't had to take care of his niece, he would have been happier._

_There it was that thought again and it killed him to have it but he couldn't stop thinking it. What if he didn't have to raise his niece? What if he had nothing to tie him to this village? Could he have made his dream come true?...was it too late? Of course, it was. Amatista was having a baby, she lost her husband, she needed her uncle, her only family more than ever…but the moment that baby was born, another chain would lock him in this town, and by the time he had another chance, he might be too old to even consider it._

_At the crack of dawn. Don stared at the stormy morning. He quietly entered Amatistas' room while she slept, and gave her a kiss on the forehead. He grabbed his bag, his trusty sword, his flute…and his brother's hat._

_He hesitated to step outside…but if he didn't do it now, he was never going to be able to._

" _Uncle Don?". He heard from upstairs. "Uncle Don?". Don was tearful and shaken, but he couldn't step back. He ignored his niece's voice….and walked outside, hidden under the stormy veil that covered Castañula that sorrowful day._

" _Uncle Don? Are you there?...Uncle Don?"._

* * *

"You…You just left….She needed you and you…You abandoned her".

Jaune was shocked. He heard the entire story. Roberto, Miguel, Margarita, Maria, Santiago…and Amatista. He listened to every word, every comment no matter how painful it was for Don or how many times he saw his mentor pull back the tears. All those mistakes, all those broken promises and shattered dreams. He always knew there was more to Don than met the eyes, but he wasn't expecting the demons that were hidden behind that smile.

Don couldn't even see him in the eyes. "I'm not a good man…I'm the sort of scum that would abandon a pregnant woman when she needed him the most. I'm the sort of monster that would much rather blame an innocent little girl than accept his own failures and an unborn child for his own stupid frustrations….All because I was afraid…afraid of getting old and dying a nobody. I'm a coward, I'm a liar, I'm a selfish failure…That's the sort of man I am".

* * *

Six hours passed and Captain Ludmila's forces had finally taken all the rescued faunus back to their village. It was now time to transport the prisoners back to Gaviota, a task easier said than done. The lack of transports and the sheer number of bandits meant she had to wait at the camp for the ships to return, but finally, they arrived and she could bring the White Moon tribe to justice.

As the bandits were loaded on the Mistralian airships, Reinaldo and a few of his tribemates were handcuffed and waiting inside a tent, two guards making sure they behaved until it was their turn to board the transports.

The tribe had fallen, Roberto had fallen. Reinaldo was frustrated at his own failure, but what was worse to him as having failed his grandfather. He couldn't help to wonder how disappointed he may have been of him. All that training, all that effort, and now everything was gone because of him. He was ashamed and constantly thought to himself how useless he was, how he didn't deserve to look at his grandfather in the eyes, not as a failure.

"Hey, quiet" a guard said to Reinaldo.

"I didn't say anything" he answered.

The guard wasn't buying it, "Yeah right. Just stay quiet, punk". He replied, but a few seconds later he approached him again, "The hell did I just said!?".

"What are you talking about?!".

"Don't play with me, you bandit piece of crap!" The guard grabbed Reinaldo by the collar and lifted him, ready to punch him in the face, when the sound came back and he noticed it didn't come out of Reinaldo.

"Hey, just calm down". His partner said.

The guard let go of Reinaldo but didn't stop seeking for the sound, "Wait, you don't hear it?".

"Hear what?".

"Shh. Listen".

The guards and the bandits paid attention to the sound…a whistle in the distance.

"It's just a whistle. Probably Willems is chilled out the te…" The guard's partner stopped when the whistle became louder…and louder and louder.

" _Whistle~"._

The soldiers all over the camp looked at their surroundings in dismay and confusion as the sound of the whistle grew closer and engulfed the cave completely.

Ludmila, signaled her soldiers to prepare for combat….but Roberto, sitting on his wheelchair right before being boarded in an airship, started to sweat cold.

" _Whistle~"._

Back at the tent, Reinaldo couldn't help but get goosebumps at the dismal melody. It only took a few seconds for the sound to deem and become fainter and fainter and fainter…

"…It…It's over?" The guard said.

The camp fell in deep silence. Only the sound of the waterfall outside could be heard faintly.

"What the hell, was that?".

The sound was gone and Ludmila signaled her tropes to return to their duties, a new airship was landing. The soldiers went back to helping Roberto board his ship…but the old man was pale…horrified…"It's here".

The soldier looked at him in confusion…and then they heard it. The landing ship began to spin uncontrollably crashing on top of some tents, crushing everyone inside and setting the camp ablaze.

The shock wave from the crash sent Reinaldo´s tent flying and the soldiers guarding him to the ground. As soon as the dust settled, he took the chance to make his escape.

Reinaldo ran, tackling a soldier in his way, he fell to the ground in the confusion and desperately tried to find a way to cut his handcuffs.

As the blue-eyed bandit crawled for his life, the soldiers opened fire against…something in the smoke cloud. Reinaldo didn't try to see but he could hear the screams of both soldiers and his own men. Gunfire wasn't as horrifying as the agonizing yells of people as they were being slaughtered.

He finally stumbled on his weapon, it was s struggle to aim and fire the shotgun correctly but he managed to blast the chain without losing his hands in the process.

Reinaldo took his shield and stepped into a world of chaos. Flames had consumed half of the camp. Corpses were littered all around, both soldiers and bandits alike, no one was safe.

Reinaldo ran to find his grandfather. He had to run past his fallen tribemates, his former friends, as he marched to take his mentor and flee the scene, even tackling some soldiers on his way.

"Grandpa!", As Reinaldo approached Roberto's ship, another ship exploded and sent him to the ground.

Roberto could only sit there, uncertain of his grandson's fate….but as the smoke and dust settled…the nightmare greeted him once more.

Roberto at first was in shock. He soon got his head down…and after a bit of reflection, he couldn't help but laugh. "Hello, old shade…It's finally my turn, huh?".

"Grandpa! Grandpa!".

The creature turned at Reinaldo for a second, but the kid was crawling…and it had a better pray.

Roberto simply gave his grandson a kind smile. The boy was kneeling and breathing exasperated. Reinaldo had failed his grandfather, he thought he hated him, he thought he was disappointed in him…and the old man just sat there, giving him the same smile, he used to give him when he was a little kid and he read stories to him. Stories of bravery, stories of heroes, stories of bright futures.

"Go, lad. Build a better future for yourself. Don't make my mistakes".

"I won't leave you!".

"It's ok, my son….You still have a future ahead of you. But me? The ghosts of my past have finally caught up to me…It's ok…now GO! GET OUT HERE!". With those words, Roberto gave his grandson his last wishes.

Reinaldo ran away with tears in his eyes.

Roberto sat smiling, greeting the nightmare-like an old friend. The Whistler did it slowly, savoring every single second.

Reinaldo ran as fast as he could, as he made it out of the cave and beyond the waterfall, he tearfully listened to the ever-growing whistle, the chilling and horrifying melody that would haunt his nightmares, for the rest of his life.

" _Whistle~"._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you everyone for reading. As always, any feedback is highly appreciated.
> 
> We are getting closer to the end of the story. Will be working hard to deliver on it.
> 
> For a bit of lore. Not much for this chapter:
> 
> Azulejos' Talon translates to Blue Jay's Talon.
> 
> Amatista is an allusion to Antonia, Don Quixote's niece, who is both worried about Quixote's safety but also wants him to be happy. Santiago is an allusion to the husband Quixote wants Antonia to get, a good man who doesn't read fantasy books because he doesn't want his niece to suffer from another man that makes his mistakes.


End file.
